TSSD Prequel : A new world, A new chance
by HecateTombe
Summary: Harriet Potter was done with the Magical world. Done with the whole world. When she learn that there is a possibility for a new life, in a new world, she takes it - and though she doesn't expect to find happiness, at least she will have freedom. KakashixFemHarry
1. Chapter 1

Hey everyone !

So, I know most of you won't bother to read this – I know I rarely do, way too pressed to read the actual story... So I can't resent you for that, and I totally don't. But I still need to vent my frustration, so here I am.

For those who think I took way too much time to deliver the promised prequel to 'Team Seven's Strangest Day', don't bother complaining. Seriously, it's a miracle it is even here, so you should be thankful. I certainly won't bother reading those complaints, even if I sound like a bitch.

Honestly. I don't care. Because it was all well-written, up to the 277e page, and I lost it all. _All_. To be perfectly honest, it was the first time I had ever written so much, gotten that far in a story – usually I become bored after the first hundred pages, because I know how it will end, the story's already over for me, and it is honestly a pain for me to write it down. And to lose all of that ? Well, I was almost decided to just give up.

Yeah, not glorious, I know. But seriously, I know a lot of authors often complain to have lost their work, and I totally believed them but I thought it was strange it happened so often – well, now I don't. We're probably cursed, or something, because I had that computer for two years only and he had never, ever done anything wrong ; and I even took my lessons on it... And suddenly it crashes. Yeah. I totally understand those other authors, and I feel for all of them !

But then I kept receiving little reviews saying they liked my published stories, and some MPs asking if I was planning on writing a prequel or a sequel, even months after having published both stories. And I thought, 'Well, I'm busy as Hell, but I'm also frustrated, and I want to publish the prequel, damn it ; and people keep asking for it because they liked my works, and I can't just let it go, can I ?'

So I wrote it all again. Of course, it's different than the first try, that much I know, even if the events are roughly the same. And I think the first work was best, but that's probably because I idealize it in my head. We will never now. It left us too soon.

Anyway. I've ranted, and hope you will appreciate this new work – which will be a chaptered story, of course, because it's so damn long. But I'm unable to tell you how many chapters there will be. We'll see as we go.

Again, any review is welcomed (except complaints), and honestly, to all the reviewers : you can thank yourself, because this story is here thanks to you. You all helped me write it again, and I wouldn't have done it without you.

Enjoy !

Ah, yes, I forgot to say it in my other stories, and it's apparently very important to precise this point, because they think we're stupid and won't know it if we're not told : DISCLAIMER : the story is mine, but none of the universes are, neither are the characters. And I don't make money out of it. Ah. What a joke.

Anyway, hope you like it ;)

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Harriet Dorea Potter-Black-Peverell-Slytherin-Griffindor-Ravenclaw was packing.

Yes, she knew her name was a mouthful, thank you very much. But it was not as if she had had a choice, you see, given that she was the last member of those illustrious Families – or at least the last Heiress.

No way in Hell was she letting the Title Black go to that little slug of a Malfoy. It was the only thing that she still had, that came directly from Sirius. It came from her Godfather, had been given to her in his will – it was _hers_ , even if only for sentimental value.

As much as she didn't really like the other Blacks – Narcissa was the only one she could bring herself to bear, in fact, and only because the woman put Family above everything else, and Harriet could understand and relate to that – she wanted to have Sirius' name next to her own.

But it wasn't why she had accepted all of those titles. Potter and Black were a given – they were her birthright – but the other five had been a surprise. Not to say that some of them weren't her _birthrights_ , of course, since she _was_ the last in line, but they had been complete surprises. Still, she hadn't accepted them for money, the political power they gave her, or even because they had been her ancestors' titles – no, she had accepted them for the knowledge that came with them.

Oh, the _books_...

Now, don't go and say she had become an Hermione, for she had _not_.

But she had just ended a war. She had just put an end to years of suffering, deaths, torture and despair, she had just put an end to years of discrimination and injustice. She had accomplished the prophecy – she was done. She was _free_.

Now, keep in mind that she wasn't Free. Not entirely.

The most obvious of her burdens were the nightmares. They were there every night without fail, plaguing her nights, showing her the _what if_ 's and the _if only_ 's, shoving her failures in her face, the death of her friends, of her family, of unknown persons even – unknown children, who had fought in a war when adults hadn't ; who shouldn't have been at the Final Battle, but had died there nonetheless.

They had been so small...

So many deaths, so many useless deaths – unknown bodies, but most of all friends.

... Cedric. Sirius. Tonks. Remus. Andromeda. _Teddy_...

The last two shouldn't have died. The war had been over for two months already, Death Eaters were imprisoned – the deaths should have stopped. But they hadn't. Andromeda and Teddy had been home when a group of resistant Death Eater had attacked. They probably thought that she would be here as well, since she passed most of her time with her godson, his smiles and innocence a wonderful balm on her bleeding and tired heart.

But she hadn't been there – she had been at a _Ball_ , on Hermione and Ron's insistence, and when she had finally been able to go home... It was to see the damned Mark flaming above the destroyed house, Andromeda (poor, poor Andromeda, the last of her family, having lost her husband, daughter, son-in-law, cousin to a stupid war) lying dead on the floor, and her death hadn't been a nice one.

Magic was wonderful, but it could also be terrifying, and to see it being used to such ends sickened Harriet, even if this feeling was dissimulated behind all the others feeling that threatened to strangle her – loss, despair, rage, hurt, culpability...

And her godson...

Her tiny, so tiny godson... So innocent, so bright, so sunny – so cold, so still, _so much blood_...

He had been a baby, still... and now would forever stay one. Forever unaware of the world's cruelty.

No matter what, she couldn't see that as a good thing.

They hadn't managed to kill her, but they damn near managed to break her. She couldn't – she hadn't been able to forget that. Their deaths had been so... utterly useless ! The war was supposed to be _over_ ! They had _won_ !

But what a victory. It had had a taste of defeat. Still had, in fact. Harriet hadn't felt as if she was her victory – she had felt so tired, so numb, and with a cortege of nightmares and regrets. Old, way before her age.

And alone.

'Victory' was a strange word, indeed, and with a definition so vague, she wasn't sure someone really knew what it meant. Because if what she had done was a victory, then she wasn't sure there was a difference between this word and 'defeat'.

She had lost _everything_ that mattered. The only thing that a defeat could have taken from her was her death, and then, it would have taken with it her pain, her nightmares, her guilt – everything that plagued her, that kept her from living. Really living.

Sometimes, when she was at her lowest, when she was so tired she didn't want to continue going through a life that tasted like a lie, she wondered if death wouldn't have been, in fact, a better end. At least for her. When she had been given a choice, back in the Forbidden Forest – when she could still die.

She knew she wouldn't have been able to let herself die, and let Voldemort take over Britain, thus committing atrocities that would have been _her_ fault, even if she wasn't there to see them anymore. She had too much of a hero complex, she could admit, to let that happen - to let go of her responsabilities and just let him do what he wanted, uncaring and unhurting at least. She wouldn't have been able to do that - she always was one for carrying the world on her shoulders. But to die with Voldemort ? To take him with her ?

That she would have preferred – except at that moment, she still had had her lovely godson, alive but already an orphan, and she had known that she had to live for him. Be there for him, like her own godfather would have been here for her, had he not been unjustly imprisoned in Askaban for twelve years.

But then he was dead, and Andromeda was too, and Ron and Hermione – no, later – and she was alone.

Still, she had fought so hard to stay alive all these years, against Voldemort and, yes, even against Dumbledore, that she just couldn't give up. She had to live, for herself, for those who couldn't do it anymore, for those who would have wanted her to do it, those who weren't ready to see her in the afterlife yet, no matter how much she was ready to go there.

And suicide would feel too much like letting Voldemort win, in a twisted way. He had tried so hard to kill her, and she had tried so hard to survive – it wasn't to give up as soon as the war was over. Because then, he would have been successfull in making her bend... He would have won - not against Britain, but against _her_ , and she couldn't give him that satisfaction, wherever he was now. She couldn't, wouldn't do it, so she fought – another war, but this one against herself, against memories and losses, ghosts and nightmares.

Even if those nightmares were memories and not inventions, even if they were so real and painful that she woke up every night in cold sweat, tears straining her cheeks ; even as she had never cried since Sirius' death. Not even for Teddy's death – she had been to spent, too drained, too numb for that.

It seemed that she could only lower her barriers, only allow herself to cry, when she was asleep.

But no matter what, the nightmares were a burden pressing down on her, forbidding her to sleep, never letting her in peace.

Then there was the Wizarding population. They alternatively loved and hated her, as they had always done, and would always do. Long ago, Harriet had thought that maybe, once everything was said and done, she would be accepted, finally, in what she thought was her world.

Fat chance.

Sure, they were thankful for her 'victory' – but it was a given, for them. There was the prophecy, wasn't it ? She had been prophesized to win, no big deal. It had been her _job_ , nothing more and nothing less.

Each and every one of her failures were inacceptable, each and every one of her success were expected. She wasn't good enough, for them – she never was.

Still now, even after she had killed Voldemort, and saved their world, she wasn't good enough for them. They loved her, but criticized her on everything.

" _Don't you want to become like_ Harriet Potter _when you're older, Sweetie ? Oh yes, you want !_ "

" _But still, she should marry and give heirs to her Families..._ "

" _Yes, she's only a woman, after all. She can't control her Families alone – why, the very idea !_ "

Because even if she had done what should have been impossible, even if she had defeated a wizard with years of knowledge and practice in magic when she had not even graduated from Hogwarts, at the end of the day, for them, she was just a _woman_.

And the Wizarding world was nothing if not prejudiced. Werewolf, Vampires, Veelas, Muggleborns, women – they were looked down upon, because they were considered as less than a Pureblood male wizard.

She had hoped, oh, she had hoped _so much_ during her Hogwarts years, that she would one day be accepted into her world. But for them, being a woman diminished what she had accomplished, and women were little more than propriety in the Families.

There was no women in position of power, with the exception of Amelia Bones, back when she was still alive. Not even Dowager Augusta Longbottom had had that much power. Sure, she had been a truly intimidating woman, but she had only been a proxy for the Longbottom Title until Neville was of age. Her power had been limited.

And even then, not only had they both often been ignored, but they had debuted in this world with the protection of their families. No one had been able to belittle, insult, criticize them when they had been little and unable to defend themselves. But her ?

She had been a public figure since she was one year old, right after the death of her parents. They had hypothesized and talked and imagined about her, her personality, her life ; and when she had finally arrived at Hogwarts, she had had to conform to their ideas of her, or suffer their critics. She had been placed on a pedestal, and no one had protected her.

Not even Dumbledore, even if it should had been his duty as Headmaster and her Magical Guardian. He had let them talk about her, let them said whatever they wanted, and they had become used to it. It was their _right_ , because in their stupid little minds, she was _theirs_ before being herself.

The journals acclamated or critiqued her depending of their whims, and the public, sheep that they were, followed dumbly.

She was a public figure, and that said a lot about the basic rights she had in their eyes. They had criticized her all her life, and showed no inclination to ever stop. So, she had given up, for the first time in her life.

Because she was not like them. She didn't know about her world. Sure, she knew the basics – what a Portkey was, how to use the Magicobus – but what did she know about being an Heiress ?

She had barely graduated from Hogwarts ! She hadn't had time to learn about her duties during her school years, let alone during the war. No one had taken the time to teach her – and let's be real, that was probably for the best. That knowledge wouldn't have helped her win the war.

What did she knew of her world ?

She was good at Transfiguration and Charms, excelled at Defense Against Dark Arts, and even at Potion (as had been proven when she had taken her NEWTs, in what had been Year Eight, after the war. Snape may have given her Trolls and criticized each of her potions, but the examiners had been impartial and she had been able to prove that _yes_ , she could be damn good at Potion) – but that was because she had to be.

She was lost for History of Magic – the professor had been quite a factor (he had been, let's be honest, the most _boring_ professor of the world. Harriet knew you shouldn't speak badly of the dead – but there was no other words to describe him). But he hadn't been the only reason of her dislike of the subject.

No, the reason was that, when she had tried to study the subject out of the classroom, determined to have good marks ; she had chosen a book on Recent History of The Wizarding World. It had been the program for their First Year. Half of the books had been written on her. Her parents' death, her life, what she had supposedly accomplished, how her survival had won them a war – all in facts so cold, so clinical that Harriet had been revolted.

That was what her life had been resumed to ? Cold facts written in an History book, filled with suppositions, as if that had happened so long ago that it was nothing anymore ? Mere facts with no feelings, no emotions – nothing ? That had been what this fated night had been resumed to : black words inked on a paper.

What did her parents think about this ? What did the dead, of others historical events, think of this – this clinical explanation of their death ? Just – no. No, she couldn't. History books have a whole new dimension, when you're actually in it.

Especially considering that no one knew what had happened this fated night – everything was but suppositions, yet it was said as an affirmation. It wasn't true, it wasn't proved, and what they said about her youth in a nice little family were _lies_. If there was so much lies only about her – what else was false, invented, supposed in the books ? And how could she know for sure ?

Reading about what they thought of her life and appearance and personality had truly been shocking. They were speaking about someone else, someone she didn't know, but was supposed to be _herself_. It was only because it was about her that she knew they were lies.

She didn't know about every single other person mentioned in the books. And she couldn't learn that, read what had been written on them – what would they think ? Would they feel like her ? She wasn't sure if there was a life after death, yet ghosts existed so there must be _something_. It wasn't just, one moment you're alive, and the next you're gone. No transition.

It couldn't be that, or ghosts wouldn't exist.

So would she be betraying them ? She knew those books were wrong, she was the living proof ! And she had realized that she couldn't do that. Couldn't read and learn lies, even if it would have been instructive on what had roughly happened in the past, as long as she skipped the parts about the important actors of said past.

It made her sick.

So she had closed her first book, and never opened another one. History of Magic class was very useful to take a nap, or finish a work for another class, after all.

That did Transfiguration, Charms, and Defense. While on the Horcruxes Hunt, she had learned bits of magic – Healing, Arithmancy, Runes, Wards...

She had _loved_ Runes, and had never more regretted her choice of taking Divination, in her third year. Easy marks, _her_ _ass_. She loathed Divination – if she had known... She would never have taken it. _Never_.

She wasn't a Seer, anyway, so it was pretty useless for her. Runes were another matter altogether, though. She loved them, almost as if they sang for her. She understood them, and it felt right to use them. It was hard to learn the different runic alphabets, sure, but so worth it. The possibilities with runes were endless (one could have different meanings, you could change a meaning when linking it to another one, and you could even mix different alphabets, though that was even harder).

Arithmancy was hard, and she admitted that she didn't really like it – it was too much like calculus. Much more complex, even. She had never been that good in math, and had never had an interest in it. She was better with concrete – using her magic, creating runes to obtain a specific effect... She was a doer, not a brainer.

Hermione was a brainer, all theory and honorable practice. Harriet, though, was perfect in practice, it came so easily to her ; but she was a bit more lost in theory. She wasn't convinced that a spell worked because you used _this_ wand movement, and uttered _that_ incantation.

No, if that was the case, then wandless and wordless magic wouldn't be possible at all (though it was way harder to do the former than the latter – for others). So all the 'conditions' to a sortilege were just... what ? Assistance ?

Maybe. But Harriet was of those that thought that magic was intent, and she _wanted_ a result when she tried a sortilege. She had created some, but there was no incantation, no complex wand movements. She would never be a Spell Creator, because no one else would be able to learn what she created, given that everyone had different ways for expressing their intention and she never bothered with specific wand movements or incantations – plus, she saw no interest in this work.

There was enough sortileges in the world already, and no one could learn them all in one life, not even wizards that could easily live for 300 years ; so there was no need to create more. Especially considering that most of the new sortileges were actually simple variations of previously existing curses or charms.

But she could admit that, sometimes, creating entirely new sortileges was helpful, and even necessary – she had done so. Still, hers were all based on intent, though all the sortileges she had created had been given a name, to help herself differentiate them – that way, no one else would ever be able to use them. Even if they heard her spells' names, they wouldn't be able to use them : having a name wasn't enough to do a spell you didn't know at all.

Not that she would let anyone use them, even if they asked – she wasn't much of a social person nowadays. Never had been, really, but she was something of an hermit now.

Anyway, she had also learned to create and destroy wards, and quite a bit of healing.

All of this, she had learned while on the run, it was what had been vital to learn. She had probably learned more magic then, than she had when at Hogwarts, as sad as that was. She had even worked on her Parseltongue, since there was apparently more to that than just speaking to snakes. She had learned, during the years, that snakes had _accents_ of all things, and had learned to understand them, and to be understood by them. She had then worked further on it, and discovered that it wasn't limited to snakes – every reptile could speak, and she could talk to them.

(And boy, hadn't that been a surprise, to search for the snake that she had _swore_ to her best friends was talking right now, only to be corrected by the little, seemingly innocent lizard that had been bathing in the sun ? She had felt quite stupid, at the moment – her on all four, searching for a non-existent snake, right in front of the damn lizard, and swearing to her friends that _yes, there is a snake in this place !_...)

She had been fascinated when she had talked to a lizard for the first time, but that had been nothing to when she had talked to a Dragon. How she had regretted her handling of the First Task of the Three Wizards Tournament, then. If only she had known ! Talk about wasted opportunities.

Though, in her defense, she had been quite busy staying alive.

Anyway, she had talked for the first time with an adult, unchained dragon a few weeks before The Battle. Courageous Dragon Riders had come to fight for their Country, along with their Dragons. There had been Charlie Weasley as well, and while talking with him, she had heard some hissed words (she had become way better at recognizing hissed talk).

She had distractedly searched for the snake, or lizard, who was talking – right before realizing it had been the dragon. That had been a shock, admittedly. She had afterwards endeavored to know each and every dragon who was there (that was literally an unique occasion), and had, by doing this, become a sort of mascot for the Riders.

They had literally looked at her with stars in their eyes, and endlessly asked her to translate their conversations with their beloved dragons. She was happy to oblige, and that had been the first time she had been admired for something she was doing (and not for stupidly surviving when her parents had died).

That had been a good time, in a tense period.

She was also quite good at Astronomy. She hadn't been, at first. Staying up at night just to observe the stars in the inky, and very often cloudy sky, was a bit too much for her, she saw no interest in it. As said before, she was a doer. There was nothing to _do_ in Astronomy. And truth be told, it was only helpful for rituals or warding magic, since they were stronger depending of the alignement of the stars, or the shape of the moon. But considering that everything was written in the Warding and Ritual books anyway, she had never taken even the smallest hint of interest for Astronomy.

That is, until her Year Five. When Sirius had died... She had been so lost, so _alone_... Then one night, when she had been sitting at the top of the Astronomy Tower (having flied there with her broom), she had looked up at the sky, and remembered Sirius' place in the sky. In the _Canis Major_ Constellation. The brightest star in the sky.

It had been, then, one of the only few stars she knew the name and emplacement of, and then only because she had learned her godfather had been named after it, and it must have stuck in her head.

It had been as if Sirius was still there in a way, looking for her even when he was – not here anymore. She had taken to learn the others, as well. At first, her families' names. Dorea, her grand-mother, had been a Black, and Blacks always gave star names to their children if they could. It was one of their traditions (probably one of the few that were actually good – or, at least, not actively bad). And Dorea being her grandmother, it made the Blacks part of her family.

Dorea, Andromeda, Narcissa (and hadn't that been a shock to learn that she was related to _Drago Malfoy_ ? Yurk), Drago, Lucius (even if he wasn't a Black, he came along because he was married to Narcissa), and even Bellatrix.

She _hated_ Bellatrix, from the bottom of her heart, and she would have given almost _everything_ to be the one who killed her – but she was still Family, for one cannot choose one's family.

Then, by association, she had learned the other stars and constellations, as well as their emplacements. It hadn't been planned, just _Sirius is situated under Orion_ , and _the Dog Constellation is made of Rigel and Betelgeuse and Orion and Sirius_ , and by doing that she had learned every star that was around. That had been quite handy when on the run, without knowing where they were going, where they were, and with no cards at disposal.

Still, Astronomy, Charms, Arithmancy (the very few she knew), Runes, Transfiguration, Defense, Healing and Warding – that was what she knew of her world. The basics, what everyone knew upon graduating, a lot more in her case... but not enough, because she wasn't everyone, she was an Heiress.

As one, there were things she had to know. But she didn't know anything pertaining to her duties. Politics, Management, Diplomacy, and even Wizarding Customs... She hadn't known, and it had showed. More, it had showed her that she had no place in their world – not the magical one, but the political one. And as an Heiress, she should have been in this world as well. But Harriet had never been much of a political person.

They didn't want her ? She wasn't good enough ? She should marry, and accept a Lord, who would do whatever he wanted with her inheritances ?

They could all go to _Fucking Hell_.

She was done – she was _so done_ with all this shit.

She had retired into Potter Manor, and became somewhat of a recluse. Not even her friends were here for her now.

They had taken to their fame like fishes to water. Hadn't they deserved it ? After all they had done ? They were truly at ease in their position as War Heroes (and they weren't criticized, so that explained maybe a little, but hadn't they learned during their years with her as a friend, that Fame was a fickle thing, and that she was no friend but well often a lot of problems ? How could they abandon her for... _nothing_ ?).

(Ron, maybe – he had done it before, and he was jealous and envious and craved attention – but Hermione ? Level-headed Hermione ?).

They had tried, at first, to drag her to social and important meetings. Harriet had followed, of course, still with the hope of being accepted. But she couldn't bear being scrutinized each second during the meeting, hearing the snide little comments on her, faking smiles for people she didn't even like – was that what she had fought for ?

To live a farce ?

No. Then, she had continued to go for her friends : they asked so nicely, they were so _worried_ for her – right until she realized they were _using_ her. Pose for a photography next to her, use her in conversation to make their point (because obviously, if _Harriet Potter_ agreed with them, then they were right ; for how could Harriet be wrong ? And they were such good friends, did you know that in their first year, they saved her life... ?), or more generally use her for their own advantages.

Ron felt entitled to her money – surely she could give him a bit ? They were friends ! And she had a lot of it, hadn't he been a loyal friend during the war ? Hadn't he fought alongside her ? One of his brothers had even died for her ! ( _Because it was Harriet fault, wasn't it ? Fred hadn't gone to war to fight for what he believed in, no, he had gone because he was friend with her, of course... Ron always was one to twist the facts so that they could help him_ ).

Hermione felt she had a right to her Houses' Libraries (completely ignoring the fact that it was _Family knowledge and magic_ , and not for _outsiders_ , no matter how close her and Harriet were), and that Harriet should make use of her Seats on the Wizengamot in order to help her pass her laws.

Both of them didn't seem to understand the meaning of the word 'No', despite Harriet's firm position on the matter.

It was as if the war had changed them, had altered their very nature – or maybe it had just showed Harriet to see beyond the mere words they always gave her, and helped her see them as they were, and not as she wanted to see her first friends.

Whatever the reason was, she hadn't been able to bear what was yet another betrayal, and she had turned her back on all of this. It had been exhilarating – doing it, standing for herself, for the first time since her birth.

So, she had retreated to her Manor, and then the books came. Oh, she had read before – what else could she do ? – but it hadn't been the almost obsessing need to learn more.

Books were utterly neutral. They didn't judge, they didn't know who she was, they didn't care. They were paper and ink, and she was only another person flipping through their old pages, discovering new magics and secrets. She had absorbed the knowledge they contained, though she had a long, _long_ way before having successfully read every one of her books' collection.

They supported her, helped her forget the deaths, the blood, the suffering, the regrets, the despair. She was just a girl reading their pages, learning new facts about a thing she loved dearly : Magic.

She had often thought, during the war, that if only she had known _this_ healing spell... Or _that_ counter-curse... Then maybe, maybe she could have saved _this_ life, and _that_ one, and maybe even _this_ one.

If she had known more spells, she could have saved so much lives ! (Hermione called it her ' _Save_ - _people_ ' thing. She called it ' _Reality_ ').

She had perfected her knowledge, immersing herself in Runes, Warding and Healing, the three subjects that interested her the most, all the while continuing her studies in Transfiguration, Potions, Charms and Defense, since she only knew what one know upon graduating, and there was so much more to learn.

Even in Defense. She was good, and excelled at Dueling – she hadn't had much of a choice – but there still was a lot for her to learn.

She had her Families' Libraries, after all. Books and books full of forgotten magic, or forbidden ones. Illusion was quite an interesting branch of magic, and Harriet had taken a liking to it. But also Blood magic, Filimagie, Spirimagie... All suppressed because only some could practice them, and the Ministry didn't like this.

They didn't like the idea that some could do what they could not – and more generally, Purebloods hadn't liked the fact that Muggleborns could do some of the magics that some of them couldn't do anymore. So they had forbidden the books, and the magics ; and all the while Purebloods still practiced them in their Houses (though, they stopped soon after, not seeing the point when they had money to do whatever they wanted. Why should they take time and effort to learn that, when Muggleborns would never be able to learn it themselves, and when they didn't need to know those magics to succeed ? That's what their Families' money was for, after all. They were lazy to a fault).

Harriet then went to travel around the world. She discovered lost magics, new magics, new populations, and different ways of viewing magic and using it. She took the time to learn how to _be herself_ , something she had never been allowed to do – not by the others, and not by herself.

Being away from Britain, from their traditional, Pureblood ways – that had been... like a first intake of breath after almost drowning. As life-saving as it was painful – because who wants to realize that the world they had given so much, loved _so_ _much_ ; that this world was imperfect and flawed and _wrong_ ?

That was how she had passed the next hundred years of her life. Quietly, discovering, mastering, and all in all living. Not burdens, no looks piercing her, and though they still criticized her heartily, she wasn't there to suffer through it anymore.

That is, until she learned by a Ministry's owl what was the new belief of the wizarding population. She was by then 128 years old, and had ended the war since 110 years already... but she still looked as if she was 20. Though she had been 18 when she had finally killed Voldemort, war and sorrow did what Time hadn't, and aged her prematurely.

But she still looked as she had when she had come back at Hogwarts for what had then been her Year Eight. And while it was usual for wizards to age much slower than muggles, to the point that you're considered middle-aged when you're 150, she was still way too young-looking for someone her age.

And that was obviously the use of Dark magic, wasn't it ? Hadn't she isolated herself from society ? Who knew what she was doing, when scouring the world ? Was she becoming dangerous ? A new Dark Lady, maybe ?

What a bunch of _morons_.

But what had enraged her was that they had asked her to submit herself to the Unspeakables. To... _study_ her. As if she was a spectacle, as if she was there to realize their will, as if she had to do what they said, as if she was a _freak_.

She _loathed_ this word.

She would never submit herself – she never had, not even in front of Voldemort, not even under torture, and not even when someone attempted to use the _Imperio_ curse on her. She submitted to no one, and it would be a cold day in Hell when she submitted to _them_.

(She was well-placed to know that that would never happen, cold in Hell, she meant – so she was safe on that side).

At first, she had resisted because she had been asked to submit too many times when at the Dursleys', and when she had discovered her magic, she had sworn to herself that she would never do it again. She was stubborn, proud to a fault in some ways, and she never backed down, or gave up.

Then, she had become Mistress of Death, and it wasn't that she didn't want to submit anymore – though she still didn't – it was that she _couldn't_ submit. Death bowed to no one, and as Her Mistress (though it was more a title than anything, since by definition Death didn't submit Herself, even to her), she couldn't submit to anyone else even if she wanted to. Not even to Death.

For example, as she had discovered when visiting Japan a few decades ago, she couldn't bow to people, even if it was their way of greeting others in their culture. Death bowed to no one, so Harriet didn't either – couldn't, more precisely.

It had been a bit difficult to explain – but then, Japanese were often wise and calm people, at least the Magical ones ; and she wasn't that much in contact with human beings to begin with, so she had never had to explain precisely why she never bowed to anyone. They usually accepted that she couldn't bow, because her magic refused to let her bow to anyone, and they had seen strangest things.

After having promised that she wasn't insulting anyone, and insisting they not bow to her either, they had let her be. Not that she had been around living people that often.

(And they still bowed to her, because they were extremely polite, and the fact that she couldn't do it didn't mean they could get away with such a thing).

But sure enough, being Mistress of Death was more trouble than anything.

It wasn't even her fault – as if she had asked to be Mistress of Death ! She wasn't even sure how that had happened, truth be told. When she had finally killed Voldemort, she won the last one of the Deathly Hallows, the Elder Wand. But she had immediately tried to 'lose' the Hallows, trying to make sure that she wouldn't become what could possibly be called Mistress of Death (there was no proof that the legend was true, after all), because she certainly hadn't chosen them.

But apparently, each of the Deathly Hallows had chosen her as their Mistress, thus making her Mistress of Death. And that had been it. Whether she liked it or not.

She had tried, oh Merlin, she had tried _so hard_ to lose the title (and she still had the hope to lose it someday – she had time on her side now, after all), but nothing ever worked.

She didn't think that she had ever tried that hard for anything else. (Except, you know, surviving. And fighting. And killing Voldemort. And – well, you got the point).

She had tried 'losing' the Resurrection Stone in the sea while flying on her broom, making the Elder Wand 'accidentally' fall into the pit of an active volcano, even give the Stone to a common muggle in the street – nothing ever worked.

They would both be there the next day, when she woke up. The Elder Wand held loosely between her fingers, the Resurrection Stone encased in a necklace around her neck, nestled in the shallow of her throat, and the Invisibility Cloak wherever she had put it the day before, because she never tried to lose it.

It was the only material thing she had from the Marauders' days, the Map having been destroyed during the war. It remembered her of happier days, when innocence was still shining in children's eyes. It was also the first thing connecting her to her father that she had received. She could never do anything to it.

But even if she had tried, she already knew what the result would have been. They all returned to her in her sleep – and even when she tried not to sleep, it took only the blink of her eyes for them to reappear. Really, she had sometimes stayed up all night to try and _see_ them reappear –surely if she was to see it happen, then she would be able to study the magic, and maybe block it ? – but even she had to blink from time to time, and it was apparently all the time the magic needed to act.

So she had accepted that she couldn't lose them, and thus the title, that way ; and endeavored to explore the world. She had just wanted to be _normal_ , and that just wasn't possible simply by being Mistress of Death, on top of being herself. Since she would never be able to find normalcy, even in appearance only, in Britain ; she had decided to go and discover the world she lived in. Not the Magic one, but the world as a whole. There, no one really knew her, and she could go for months without seeing any other person, and that had been as close to perfect peace as she had ever experienced.

She never wanted to be recognized, so she never gave her last name when she had to introduce herself – Harriet was a common enough name that it wasn't suspicious to give it, and she refused to take a fake name ; she wouldn't let them take that away from her, on top of everything else – and no one ever recognized her. She hated being recognized, and scrutinized, and followed everywhere she went.

(That was also why she had never told a soul of this particular title of hers – not that she had told them of the others, bar Potter and Black. She had enough problems with those two, and shuddered to think of the greediness she would see in the others' eyes if they knew – even her friends).

She had been... satisfied, with her life. But then she had received the Ministry's letter.

That had cemented her decision. A decision that had taken root in her head quite some time ago.

That had been in the last few years of her self-imposed exile. She had used it as a mean to live, to learn to live at least – no burdens, no expectations weighting onto her, nothing she _had_ to do.

Only what she wanted, and when she wanted it. No one to tell her what she should do. Honestly, she had way more contact and discussions with animals than with humans. She used these years to master her different magics, helped by her Libraries' books, and what she discovered during her travels.

She had finished mastering her Parselmagic – as least all that had been written in the books stored into Slytherin's Vault (and hadn't she been happy to learn that Voldemort hadn't been able to inherit of the Family ? Apparently, Family magic accepted only someone whole, refused to accept only part of a soul, and since the Inheritance could only happen at 18, when one had graduated from Hogwarts, Voldemort had been rejected because by then, he had already split his soul twice. Harriet had been very glad to hear this, because Voldemort with Slytherin's knowledge ? That would have been a nightmare, and from what she had recently learned in Parselmagic, they would probably have lost the war).

Snakes had been very helpful during her travels. The magical ones mainly – they remembered things forgotten by any human, and knew where to find old, forgotten monuments lost in a tropical jungle, or under the water of a lapis-lazuli sea. But the non-magical ones were the funniest.

She had discovered many lost monuments, and many lost magics – though she had never been able to find anything about Atlantis. Had she had more time, and determination, or simply more interest, she would probably have found it (she had Eternity, after all), but she had had other things to do, and thus the mythical city would forever keep its secret.

Or, to be fair, would simply not be discovered by her. Harriet wasn't overly proud, and didn't think that future wizards would be unable to find the mythical city. Still, considering that the wizards' levels were going down, and rapidly, nowadays ; she was almost sure they would never discover it.

Well, they could surprise her. They had done it before – even if only negatively. Still, those things could happen (...she didn't have much hope).

Anyway, a bit before that, she had mastered her Necromancy.

Becoming Mistress of Death had awoken the Necromancy powers sleeping in her blood, and that she possessed for descending from the Peverell Family. She hadn't had much of a choice – ghosts followed her everywhere, over-polite ; and dead raised themselves out of their graves when she walked by – it hadn't been very discreet. She had had to learn and control those powers, that had been vital. She hadn't been able to do anything without dead following her (and she was ever so happy that that hadn't happened when in Britain – they would have screamed for her head).

After using way too much 'Obliviate's on unsuspecting and deadly scared Muggles and Wizards (and probably provoking a new period of muggles creating movies and games with what they called 'Zombies') she had found a secluded spot and learned to control her Necromancy. Death had been particularly helpful on that point, even if She usually didn't talk mych. Harriet didn't use those particuliar powers of hers much – not at all, in fact, now that she could consciously use them. The dead were best left in peace. She used them just enough to hide her powers of Mistress of Death, to avoid appearing to the dead like she was the only shining light in their endlessly dark world.

(Even if she did admit that, sometimes, the temptation to see her long-gone family and friends was really, really strong. Especially on the anniversary of The Battle).

(But she never did, because she was condemned not to die, and what was the point of torturing herself, seeing her dead parents, family and friends, all the while knowing she would never be able to reach them ?).

(She had tried, once, when the need had been too strong, when she hadn't known better. But Dead had a hierarchy, and they had to call her Mistress – her _parents_ calling her _Mistress_ – and she had never done it again. They said they understood, and that they loved her and were proud of her and what she had done, and that she deserved peace and happiness – but it hadn't been enough, hadn't been what she had hoped. She had been burned so badly, the mere memory of it was enough to dissuade her when the need to speak to them again burned right under her skin).

Then she had decided to master her Spirimagies. Occlumency, Legilimency, Telepathy, Empathy, those were the different sides of this particular branch of Magic. The last three had been somewhat easy, for she seemed to have a way with them. She had always been skilled at observing people and feeling their emotions (that came with survival, and she had used that skill a lot when growing up with the Dursleys, so that she could avoid them when their moods were... dangerous for her) ; Telepathy was, roughly, imposing your thoughts into someone's head (and she had a stronger will than most) ; and she was naturally gifted with Legilimency.

Occlumency, though, had been quite hard for her. Not only was she certain that Snape had actually broken what little natural defenses she had had, but to be able to master it, one had to perfectly organize their head. Meaning, their memories.

That was a very, very hard thing for her – most of her memories, she wanted to leave buried forever. But she was nothing if not determined and stubborn (ask Voldemort), and she had faced each and every one of her nightmares.

That had not been easy, and certainly not quick. It had taken a lot of meditation – and that was during one of those trainings that _that_ happened.

A pull. Or was it a tug ? As if someone... asked for her ? Or something wanted to pull her in another place ? She wasn't sure. It felt as if she was being... What ? Called for ? No, not exactly. The sensation was not that different from the one you have when using a Portkey, though not exactly the same.

No, if she had to choose a word, that would be... summoned ? It did feel a bit like when she was summoning a snake – except, not exactly, and the other way around. She wasn't sure. It had been strange, though.

She had been in meditation, which was no easy feat for her, but she had been determined to master Occlumency ; so after making sure that whatever that was had no actual effect on her, she had put it out of her mind and concentrated on constructing her mental wards, and facing her own past. If she allowed herself a distraction, then going back to work on her mind would be all the more difficult.

Some months later, Occlumency finally mastered ; she had taken the time to search answers on what that had been, since that had happened once or twice since then. She didn't like the fact that someone or something could touch her, touch her magic, for the pull had been centered on her magic. She was certain it hadn't been the first time it had happened either, but she was usually doing something, or using her magic, and not in a relaxed and peaceful state. She was usually not meditating (which had helped her centering on herself), and not feeling her magic, (which had allowed her to really _feel_ the pull.

Furthermore, her magic stopped whatever _it_ was, and it was weak anyway, so it was not surprising that she had never felt it before (or, more accurately, remarked it).

And she was Mistress of Death. _No one_ summoned Death.

She had immersed herself in her core, and looked at her intertwined magics. She had a core, of course ; and while hers was immense, it was something every magical being had. Like them as well, each and every branches of magic that she practiced was linked to her core, since her magic was used to them, and knew how to respond instinctively when she asked for them. She probably had a lot more than the others, though.

Spirimagie, Filimagie (it was an in-progress work, since she was not that much interested in it – or was it more correct to say that she had lost her interest for it ?), Blood magic, Wards, Healing, Transfiguration, Charms, Defense, Alchemy, Dark magic even ; but the one that she was concerned with for now was her Parselmagic.

The feeling had, upon further inspection, come from there – and sure enough, there had been a strange speck of dark green among the bright emerald green of her Parselmagic. She had curiously poked it, and upon sensing _something_ , she had tried to reverse the... summoning.

To say she had been shocked to hear and see (after opening her eyes), an explosion of white smoke, would be an understatement. She had been so startled that she had apparated at the other side of the clearing in which she had been standing for the experience (better to fight in open space when you don't know what to expect), only to see a red snake when the smoke cleared.

She had been surprised to see one, because that didn't feel like what using a ' _Serpensortia_ ' did, but she had been quite sure that she wasn't hallucinating. Maybe it was a characteristic of her Parselmagic ? That would be surprising, though, given that none of the Slytherins books ever talked about such a thing. She had been startled out of her thoughts when the snake talked.

Now, hear it well.

 _Talked_. Not _hissed_.

And in Japanese of all things !

Luckily, she had learned the language when travelling (it had been particularly helpful for her, given that they were the masters of Occlumency, along with the Chinese ; and their vision of the discipline had greatly helped her).

(It also allowed her to read their books, and learn their spells).

After much explanations, and puzzled awe, Harriet learned some very interesting things.

Turned out that when she killed the Basilisk, back in second year, she had not so much killed the _King_ of Serpents, than she had killed their _Queen_. Or, more accurately, their _Boss_.

Yeah, that had been surprising. What had been even more surprising, though, was to learn that the title was a matriarchal, and hereditary one. More clearly : _she_ was the new Boss of the Snakes.

Yeah.

Had she been a boy, she would have never known about it (not that she had, even as a girl), and the title would have been given to a certain Manda who, even if she hadn't killed the last Boss, was right under her in terms of strength (though that only meant that the gap between the two of them was phenomenal, not even talking of the rest of the Snakes).

And then she learned of another world. Literally another world, in another universe. One where magic didn't exist but chakra did, one which was completely different from the one she knew, yet startlingly similar. A world of ninjas.

That had been... exhilarating, to learn about this. Just imagine it – a world entirely different, with no pollution, and apparently where people using the equivalent of magic didn't have to hide themselves from the ones that didn't ! (Though, it appeared that they had to hide from other Villages, because they sometimes attacked themselves, and spies and assassins were common).

(But that was no problem, not for Harriet. She was what this world had made her, she was a warrior. She had been fighting for her life since eleven, and surviving since her placement at the Dursleys'. That was the only thing she knew, bar magic – war. Fight, train, always be ready for anything... She wasn't good for a peaceful life. Maybe she had been, but not anymore. The Wizarding World asked for a Savior, a warrior, and they _created_ one. She needed action, and adrenalin, the thrilling sensation that came with accomplishing _something_ , the feeling of being useful, _needed_... That was what she needed, now – and maybe, maybe this world -).

(Ron and Hermione had happily settled, living a peaceful and sheltered life. She hadn't been able to).

(And spending time in hostiles jungles, having to fight for her life when entering old and forgotten magical temples, protected by unknown spells – that was her idea of a peaceful life – a fullfilling one).

It was like discovering the Wizarding World all over again, when she had been eleven.

And the best part was that she _could_ , in theory, go there.

She was, even if she hadn't been aware and hadn't been given a choice in the matter, the Boss of the Snakes, who were a Summon Clan. It meant that people who had been authorized to sign their Contract could summon them in battle, for example, and they would fight alongside their summoner.

Apparently, they had two summoners already. One Orochimaru, and one who had been his apprentice, Anko Mitarashi. From what her Snakes had told her, Orochimaru was a traitor, and a crazy person who liked to experiment on people. Her apprentice had been a victim, but she had returned to Konoha (the Village with which the Snakes had been affiliated before Orochimaru's treason).

(According to them too, the apprentice, an Anko person, was also a crazy person – though in a good way, since apparently being crazy was a condition _sine qua non_ to being a ninja, and there were different types of craziness).

(That worked for Harriet, since she was honest enough with herself to admit that she was not exactly the poster-child for sanity).

(She almost couldn't wait to meet the ninjas – the good ones at least, the bad ones seemed like a bunch of problems and headaches – just to be with people as crazy as she was – or even more crazy than she was : persons who didn't cringe at the thought of drawing blood, who were used to death, whose first reflex was to attack, _then_ ask questions, who cared little for appearance's sake…).

(She was not the craziest person on her Earth, but she could say with certainty that the others were mostly bad-crazy ; whereas, even with her status of Mistress of Death, she was mostly good-crazy).

Her Snakes were quite happy to finally meet their Boss, and ecstatic with the fact that she was in perfect condition, because none of them apparently liked the one who would succeed her if she was to die. The aforementioned Manda, who liked to be given human sacrifices if Orochimaru wanted her help.

It was with her that Orochimaru had signed the Contract, actually, since by then the last Boss was already magically tied to Hogwarts, without hope for freedom. Magic could be frightening, sometimes, and she had been driven crazy from the absence of chakra, and life.

Harriet almost felt bad for having killed her, but then again, it had been survival. Plus, she preferred to think that she had put an end to the old Boss' suffering.

Still, she was now their new Boss, and she had already decided that she would have a _conversation_ with Orochimaru and this Manda snake.

(Figures that even in another world, the bad guy was linked to Serpents. What were snakes, scapegoats ?)

Apparently, the tug she had felt when meditating had been Orochimaru's attempts to summon her. But she was on a whole other world altogether, and that would ask an unimaginable quantity of chakra, one he simply didn't have. And that was without taking into account that her own magic fought the Summon, or even that as Mistress of Death, no one could summon her.

(No one summoned Death – they could call upon Her servitors, though, such as Shinigami, or the Reapers. Apparently, from what Death had told her, that had already happened a few times, in other worlds – yes, Death apparently liked to talk with Harriet, something about being able to have a conversation with someone other than Herself for once. Harriet didn't ask).

But she could summon them to her, since she was their Boss, and was quite powerful. Even as just Harriet, she had more magic than anyone else in this era (and every other eras, indeed). But with the boost that came with being basically the equivalent of a _Goddess_ ? She had more than enough.

Summoning the snake had still cost quite an honorable amount of magic, though, so she didn't abuse of the power. She had learned everything she could from those she now considered to be _her_ snakes, summoning a few alternatively, and immediately trained, and learned, what they could teach her.

For one, chakra wasn't magic, and she simply didn't have chakra. She was a magical being, from another world – she would never develop chakra coils. She had a magical core, and that was it.

Chakra was an energy derived from two sources, a mental one and a physical one. Training could, and would, give larger reserves to one, and they had only five ways of releasing their chakra in a battle (kekkai genkais notwithstanding) : water, fire, earth, wind and lighting. They could also use it to Summon, and do some little things, or even boost one's physical capacity (strength or speed), but that stayed very limited.

Magic was an energy derived from one's core, though the more you stayed in a magical environment, the more you were susceptible to be powerful. That's why Purebloods were supposed to be way more powerful than Muggleborns – and maybe they had been, a long time ago. But inbreeding had cost them this advantage.

That was also why she was strong even as a simple witch, genetics notwithstanding : not only had she survived the Death Curse, _Avada Kedavra_ , and thus gained a curse scar (meaning a constant contact with the potent magic contained in the soul shard in her scar), but she had also been protected at every moment by her mother's ritual protection, and even by the Blood Wards, under which she had lived daily for ten years, then more or less two months per year once she had discovered the Magical World.

They may all have been forbidden magics, and her mother's protection not understood by anyone ; but they were potent magics still, and had affected her core's development. For the best.

(Especially considering that if they had not been present, the Dursleys' treatment would probably have damaged her core, irremediably so).

So she couldn't do what ninjas did. She could, however, copy the effects obtained with chakra while using magic, because walking on walls ? Jumping amazingly high ? And running on water ?

Those were definitely some things she wanted to be able to do.

It had not been easy, not by any mean, but she had managed to do it. Somewhat. The harder had been to do it while using a minimal amount of magic, but she had succeeded. She had also learned to copy some low-level ninjutsu, but hadn't been that interested in it, and had quickly given up. She was magical, and did magic, and found doing chakra-based techniques with magic was needlessly hard with few interests or advantages. If she was to fight one day with a ninjutsu expert, then she would just use her magic to take control of whatever element he would try to use against her, and that would be oh-so-much-more easy. And much less taxing.

She had learned taijutsu though, and was proud to say that her speed, reflexes, eye-sight, coordination and flexibility were all Jonin-level – though her strength was high-genin level at best. What can you do ? Her body just wasn't made for heavy-hitting, genetics hadn't prepared her for physical strength.

Still, she was still way stronger than any other muggle on this world, and even wizard (the lazy asses). She doubted she would have won against Hagrid in an arm wrestling, though.

She had been delighted to learn that they had an equivalent of Runes, though it was called Fuinjutsu. One of her snakes told her than some Masters of the art, as rare as they were nowadays, could even draw their seals on thin air with only their chakra, and they would work all the same !

She had immediately endeavored to apply the principle to Runes, only using her magic to trace the symbols without any material support, and was thus far successful. She had also began to mix Runes and Fuinjutsu, and though some simply didn't mix at all, like some of the Fuinjutsu symbols absolutely refused to work with magic ; others opened a whole new range of possibilities.

A whole new range of explosions, too ; and for once she was thankful to be immortal, for more than one of her tries would have killed her on the spot, if she hadn't been. It had still been very painful.

Then there had been the throwing knives – though they were, then again, way more similar to Japanese's weapons than any other country's.

In fact, the Elemental Nations, as they were called, were strangely like Japan, if she was to believe her snakes (and why would they lie to her ?).

Hence she had acquired Kunais, Shuriken, and even Senbons (even if she wasn't exactly precise with the latter, it didn't matter since they were coated in the deadlier poison of the world – hers. Even if she just grazed someone with one, they would still die in less than a minute).

She had learned how to throw them perfectly, since they were a must for any ninja. Really, apparently _every_ ninja had some on them at all time. They simply never went without them.

She had perfected her mastery of the Japanese, or course, since it was the world's only language (andhadn't that been a welcome information ?) and had then envisioned for the first time the crazy but doable idea of travelling into this other world. To be honest, it had probably always been in the back of her head since the very beginning, hence explaining why she had taken so much care in learning about the world as if to fit in it ; but it was the first time she had consciously allowed herself to consider it. Before, it had just been learning something no one else here would ever learn, just... practicing what people, somewhere, were doing –just playing with the idea. But now...

Of course, wizards would say it was impossible. But then again, wizards liked to say a lot of things were impossible – not even using logic.

They followed what the ministry said, and the ministry banned a lot of magic, saying it was either impossible or Dark, most of the time because they weren't able to do it. So the wizards never learned those magics, and little by little they disappeared. _Dark_ and _impossible_ were two very important words in the Wizarding World.

What a pity.

For wizards, something that hadn't happened was impossible.

Then again, for them, travelling back in time, where there would be the same person twice, thus creating a paradox, was easily possible – but travelling into another world, where no such paradox existed, wasn't ?

And let's not talk about the great mind who decided to invent a mean of travel, and decided to choose _fireplaces_. 'Let's walk through the fire', indeed. And no one had thought it was a bad idea.

Wizards !

She had always refused these limits. She had been limited all the time when with the Dursleys, and she had obeyed – she had _believed_ them. ' _Freaks don't eat with normal people_ ', ' _Freaks don't need a bedroom, a cupboard is enough_ ', they said. And she followed.

But their favoring phrase had been ' _Magic_ _Does_ _Not_ _Exist_ '. And she had believed it, like she had believed anything else they said (her parents were worthless drunks who died in a car accident, she was no one _, no one would ever love her_...).

And then she had learned she was a witch. They had _lied_. About that – about what else ? (Every child deserves a bedroom, no one should sleep in a cupboard, she wasn't a Freak, she should eat at a table with the others – her parents weren't worthless drunks, they were great wizards and they had died for their daughter, she was someone, _she had been loved, she could be loved_...).

She had then and there decided she wouldn't ever accept limitations again. For her, Magic was _intent_ , rather than just determined movements and incantations. Because she had never believed in those limits, but always tried to surpass the ones that were placed by others, she had been able to do 'impossible' things.

(Conjuring a corporal Patronus at thirteen. Winning against Voldemort several times. Killing the mad man).

As she had learned long ago, 'impossible' simply wasn't Magic.

She had wondered for a time why no one else did this, why everyone decided to follow the consensus, and believe in said limits. Maybe because it was easier that way ? You are given instructions, as well as what the limit is, and it's easier to do ?

Maybe.

But it was sad, to realize that the Magical World was destroying itself, bit by bit. First it's the ban on some Magics (and though Necromancy is indeed a Bad Thing, and an unnatural one to boot – dead should be left alone – Illusions most definitely are _not_. And even then, using a bit of Necromancy during a trial, in order to ask the victim who had killed them, was something that should not have been banned – it certainly would have limited the judiciary errors wizards were fond of ), then the limits placed in children's heads, then what ? Fewer and fewer magics available, to the extent that only the basics are covered ?

If you want to know more, then you have to come from an Old Family, and not be too lazy (but considering every Pureblood was lazy... Even Ron was, the only exception to this rule being Luna, but she was cool like that).

By refusing these limits, so, Harriet had been able to accomplish some 'impossible' things. Such as having multiple animagus forms (three, in fact), and magical ones with that. She wasn't complaining – she loved her forms, they were made for her.

One was a Basilisk, as said earlier, and the other a Phoenix. They _meant_ something, she knew _why_ she had them. It was because she had Phoenix's tears and Basilisk's venom in her veins. The highly magical elements had merged with her own magical core, and her animagus forms were thus developed.

(Harriet supposed it was a bit more complex than that. When she had just killed the Boss of the Snakes, tears and venom had been battling in her body. Both kept the other at bay, and then she had become the new Boss. It meant that she had to have a Serpent form, but her original animagus wasn't one at all. So her magic, having recognized her new title, had then worked _with_ the venom to absorb it, and convert it in another animagus form. She wasn't sure how that had worked, and she supposed the Phoenix's tears just followed, thus creating her second form. It was only suppositions, though, and would forever be, since she didn't have the means nor the interest to test her theory. As said before, she wasn't a brainer).

Yet those two forms were perfect for her. And so intertwined in her life...

The Basilisk that had tried to kill her in Second Year, Fumseck that had saved her. His feather in her wand, the Basilisk's fangs with which she had destroyed Horcruxes. The Basilisk Venom and the Phoenix Tears in her blood.

A slithering death, a flying life – they were opposite and complementary. And wasn't Harriet the embodiment of Death and Life ? Always alive, never to die, wasn't that Life to its fullest ? And in the other hand, forever here, undefeated, wasn't that Death to a T ?

She was both, she was Basilisk and Phoenix, and she was Life and Death. They suited her perfectly... Even if her title was only Mistress of Death.

Her third form was a magical one, as well, and it represented her perfectly, if she could say so herself. She rarely used it (in fact she rarely used any of her forms, she was perfectly content with her human form), but it was the one she used the most.

If the Basilisk and the Phoenix represented her life, her experiences and hurts ; her last form was herself, her very nature and character.

But back to the subject at hand, travelling to another world could be possible. Death was, after all, everywhere, and was quite present on this world, if what she had learned was true.

Still, she hadn't been ready to go.

Earth was, for lack of a better way to say it, _her_ world. She had fought, bled, suffered, _died_ for it. That was where her ancestors, her parents were laid in the earth, and she had always thought, ever since she knew the graves' emplacement, that she would one day lay there as well. Next to her family.

She had tried so much for this world, to save it, to be accepted – she had given so much (her innocence, her youth, her life), but she had never received anything for it. Decorations, dubious admiration, a lot of criticism, and a lot of pain and disillusion.

The letter had just confirmed her decision, pushed her to take the last step. She was travelling to another world (and maybe here she would be able to find acceptance).

What had really pushed her over the edge was the fact that they had, with all of their wisdom, decided that they would organize a vote, in an soon-to-be-held Magengamot session, on whether she was or wasn't capable of managing her Families' fortunes.

There was no precedents, of course. It was a direct attack against a Lady of two Houses – but this Lady was _Harriet_ , and that seemed to explain and justify everything. If she was declared unfit for her Titles (and she was under no illusion that that was what would happen, especially since _she_ wasn't allowed to vote, despite having Seats of her own), then someone, named by the Ministry, would marry her and basically take control of everything that was hers – even her life.

That was how women were considered in the Wizarding World. As objects, belonging to their husbands. But Harriet wouldn't – _refused_ to ever live such a life.

So yes, Harriet Dorea Potter-Black-Peverell-Slytherin-Griffindor-Ravenclaw was packing.

And it wasn't some light packing either. No, she was taking _everything_.

She never planned to return here, after all. Of course, there were some things she couldn't bring with her – her Houses, for example, or even her House-elves. They were tied to a House's magic, as well as the Earth's magic. They could only exist in this world, not another one. And, though they needed to be tied to her magic as well, her being in another world wouldn't break the connection.

It would be as strong as if she was still in this world, though they wouldn't be able to answer her calls. But they would still work for her as long as she was alive (which looked to be quite a long time, if she couldn't manage to lose her immortality) or as long as they were. Since they had her authorization to have family of their own... She didn't think a day would ever come when she wouldn't have any House-elf working for her left.

She refused to let them die just so she could live somewhere else – she wasn't that egoistical – so the fact that they could still be tied to her no matter the distance between them was relief.

She had packed everything else – everything that had been in her Vaults, and in her Houses. She absolutely _refused_ to let anything behind, anything that the Ministry could seize by abusing its authority (and in the doubtful event that they managed to break her protective wards around her homes).

That hadn't been easy.

Right after she had won the war, she had gone to Gringotts. The Goblins were all ready to go to war with them. She had (with Ron and Hermione), broken into Gringotts, stolen from a Vault, and escaped with one of their trained dragons, thus breaking a great portion of the dome. The reparations' cost was astronomical, they had to find and train another dragon – and that was without even taking into account the harm done to their reputation.

The cost of the reparations only was enough to make them want to cry.

So they had taken their spears and swords, endorsed their armors, and were ready to declare war, again. They were a warrior race, and would never let such a offence go unpunished.

When their main enemy (her) set a foot into their territory (for Gringotts was Goblin territory), they had been ready to attack her, and die trying. She was the Savior, the Girl-Who-Lived-And-Won, the Winner. They held no doubts as to their chances of winning this war – she was already a legend – but they were prepared to die. That was the least they could do.

Even when she told them that she wanted to talk, all the while blocking their attacks and defending herself, they didn't stop.

Though, when she began talking of reparation, now _that_ caught their attention. There's nothing a Goblin loves more than money, after all.

By then, she thought she only had the Potter and Black title. But that meant enough money for twenty royal lives. At least.

So she had talked – and this time, they listened.

She would pay for reasonable reparations (she may not know her world much, but she knew Goblins and was no fool), and she would express her faith and trust in Gringotts to the Wizarding population. By then, the Goblins were listening intently, but were still intending to fight.

Then she had proposed them a dragon.

Actually, it hadn't been as much for them than it had been for a friend. As explained before, Dragon Riders had come to fight for Freedom, Light, and against Tyranny, Torture, Discrimination and Voldemort.

Yes, Voldemort's name had its place up there.

Still, that was more than a lot of people did.

While waiting for the battle, Harriet had talked to the dragons. They were marvelous creatures, and perfectly dangerous – but not wild, mindless beasts. Whatever the Wizards seemed to think, dragons were loyal, and had probably more honor than a lot of Wizards she knew.

Of course, dragons were dangerous. But tamed ones, while still deadly, didn't attack everything at all – though they weren't so much tamed as they were raised with affection, care, and respect.

Take a dog, for example. Supposedly the best friend of human kind, a wild dog will attack and bite like a wolf if given half the chance. The same could be said for dragons : when a wild dragon is around, you hide and pray to live to see another day (though it is rarely efficient).

And as a dog will attack to defend its master, so will a dragon protect his or her Rider. But neither the dog nor the dragon are, by then, mindless beasts – quite the opposite, actually.

While talking to them, she had discovered old, wise minds, with a penchant for sarcasm and teasing ; and though they were still fierce, they could also be soft (but do not ever tell them she had said that. They would probably take it as an insult).

She had met a female dragon with a particularly sharp tongue, named Chrisalled. She had loved her humor (quite a dark one, in fact) because it was quite similar to hers. But after the battle was done, the dead buried and the wounded taken care of, she had gone to see what had become her friends only to learn that Chrisalled's wings had been broken by a Giant's punch.

She couldn't fly anymore, and no amount of magic would ever change that. Her magic battled the healers', and while some spells did indeed work on dragons, wings were a delicate part of their anatomy, and a grave wound here was often irreparable.

This one hadn't been, but she would never fly again. A dragon who couldn't fly was a dead dragon, though, as cruel as it seemed. She couldn't hunt anymore, and her wings were always kept tucked against her sides.

The Preserve she had come from had, sadly, no need for a walking dragon. No male would ever want her, so she wasn't useful for reproduction, and her only use would be potion ingredients – all in all, Chrisalled was ready to die. The couldn't afford to keep her for nothing.

Her Rider was inconsolable. A bond between a dragon and his Rider was a strong one, and he knew she would have to die. Not only he didn't have enough money to pay for a peaceful place at the Preserve for her, but _she_ was ready to die. It was instinct, for her – wingless dragons were dead dragons, that was the way of life...

That is, until Harriet came by and proposed her a deal.

The dragons had came and fought for a war that wasn't their. Harriet held a lot of respect for the Dragon Riders, who had fought when they could have stayed securely in their Preserves, who weren't even in Britain. Likewise, she had a lot of respect for the dragons themselves, who had no interest in this war other than their Riders' will.

She had felt responsible for them – for Chrisalled's state.

She wouldn't – couldn't let her die. There had been enough dead as it was. So she proposed a deal instead. Free meat everyday for a peaceful job, with only the odd intimidation show every so often.

That's right, she proposed her a job at Gringotts'.

The total opposite of a Dragon Preserve, Goblins had no need for a flying dragon – they didn't keep one for his aerial prowess, after all. No, Chrisalled would be a Vault guardian, and the Goblins would have a dragon who wasn't trying to eat them or try to escape at the first occasion, that would never try to fly away in search of freedom.

That was perfect for every party.

Of course, she would have a charmed room, in which she would be able to feel the wind's caress, and the sun's warmth. Earth and grass under her feet, water running through the ground in an imitation of a river.

Everything she could want, she would have ; and she only had to watch over the Vaults, burning whoever tried to defy the Goblins and thought greed was more important than life. It wouldn't be as exciting as a true, real hunt ; but Chrisalled would be able to satisfy her hunting instincts when tracking and killing thieves.

Chrisalled and her Rider accepted – as did the Goblins.

To sweeten things with them, she had also proposed to give them some Goblin-made objects back from her Vaults. They hadn't been happy with the return of only _some_ of their _loaned_ objects (why wizards couldn't seem to understand that a Goblin-made object is never sold, but only _loaned_ until the buyer's death, neither the Goblins nor Harriet would ever understand – it had been explained very clearly in an old book Harriet had read once, in the Library, at Hogwarts).

That is, until she then expressed her intention of renewing the loan of the other objects. She had no need for a Goblin-made brooch, or even tiara – but she renewed the loan of each and every weapon she had in her Vaults, and was determined to master them. She had only given back the cursed weapons – those that had been created with the curse tied to them. She had no use for a sacrificial dagger, after all, since she never intended to sacrifice an innocent (and only innocents could be used for sacrifices).

Goblin-made weapons had, as well as very specific enchantments on them, the ability of absorbing everything that would strengthen them. That was very useful, since she would simply have to coat them in her Basilisk venom ; and nothing wizards could create. Plus, they were a warrior race, they knew more about good weapons than wizards ever would.

It meant reparations' costs from her pocket, a new dragon immediately ready to work, the preservation of their reputation, the return of some of their long-time 'lost' objects, as well as the renewed loan of some of their other loaned objects. At the end of the day, they had earned _more_ money than they would have, had nothing happened.

They were more than happy to accept her back into Gringotts, and 'forget' that she had ever stolen from them (though Harriet knew they would never forget, even if they had forgiven – and for Goblins, that was quite a lot already), and welcomed her back as warmly as they could (that is to say, not at all).

(At least they put their weapons away, and stopped trying to behead her).

(That counted as a _win_ ).

She had by then been 18, so she had taken the Inheritance test – only to discover she had inherited a lot more than she had thought she would. The Goblins had been delighted – it meant Vaults stayed or returned back to activation.

Some she could understand – Peverell had come with her title of Mistress of Death, as strange as it was, even if it had already been buried in her blood. Likewise, Lestrange had come to her only by a case of circumstances : since Bellatrix died after her husband, who died after his brother, their inheritance came back to Harriet. Rabastan, who had no wife and no children, gave everything to his older brother, who gave everything to his wife, who gave everything to her closest family.

That was how Wills basically worked in the Magical world. Since the Lestrange had no other members, Bellatrix inherited everything. Since she had no children, it came back to the Black Family, whose Head was Lord Black – or, as it was, Lady Black.

And though Harriet had adamantly refused to ever have the name Lestrange in her official name, she had accepted the legacy – how couldn't she ? For all that she would have wanted nothing to do with it, she _was_ interested in the books (if only to search counter-curses), and she didn't think it was wise to virtually give everything to _Malfoy_.

No, not wise at all.

Then there was the Slytherin title – understandable, since she was then the Boss of the Snakes, as well as the legitimate Lady of the House by Right of Conquest ; an old, magical tradition. Magic Herself recorded these traditions, and She had recognized Harriet as the rightful Lady Slytherin.

Griffindor was logical, since she had been his Heiress since Second Year, when she had called for help, and received his sword for it. The sword had recognized her courage and sacrifice, and since her line comported some Griffindor Blood, it had activated it when she had first taken the sword in hand.

Slaying the Basilisk with it concluded the ritual, even if she hadn't know it then – though it was the act of slaying a monster with said sword that had concluded the ritual, not the fact that it had been a snake.

As for Ravenclaw... Now _that_ had been a surprise. It appeared that her mother wasn't that much of a Muggleborn – rather, the descendant of a long line of Squibs. Harriet felt sad she had never known, before dying. She was sure her mother would have loved to learn about this.

It had been a surprise, but a welcomed one. Almost as if she was wearing the Evan name – but it was her mother's only. She finally had something from her mother, except her eyes and books from the Potter Vaults. Something to tie her to her Lily, the woman who had died for her, the woman whose voice she still heard in her nightmares, or around Dementors. The woman Harriet didn't know at all, and had nothing from.

She had welcomed it.

Some had also named her their Heiress, but they weren't from Old and Noble Families, and she hadn't had to take their names. Though that had added some Galleons to her Vaults (as one could add some water drops in an ocean. Not much of a difference), and some books ; that wasn't very consequential (and Harriet had dutifully searched for any blood-legitimate relative before accepting the legs. She didn't want to ruin people when she had already more gold than she could count – some people could be decidedly petty when they were angry with someone from their family).

Still, after the deal was concluded, loans renewed, and Chrisalled installed ; Harriet managed to make the Goblins promise they wouldn't reveal her other names. As far as everyone knew, she was Lady Potter-Black – a very impressive name all of its own, without even adding the others in the lot.

But she had succeeded in pacifying her relations with the Goblins, as peaceful as relations with Goblins could be ; there was no war, and they even seemed to like her – more than they liked the other wizards, anyway. Though, it was probably because she was their single most wealthy client in the world, and polite to boot.

But heh, at least her goal had been fulfilled.

(Though she could admit, at least to herself, that she had found bitterly funny the fact that Bellatrix's Vault was now hers, and that she could just have waited for the bitch to die – or kill her herself – as well as her husband and his brother, to access the Vault. That would have prevented the mess with Gringotts. But was what done was done).

So, packing. Yes.

As said before, it was no light packing. Oh, no, not at all.

Especially taking into account that whatever she left here would be seized by the Ministry as soon as they were able to do so. She didn't want them to gain anything from her – not anymore.

They had taken enough as it was.

It had taken a long time to organize her trunks, trying to keep a semblance of organization. She had succeeded, thankfully, but almost became bald in the process. She really ought to remember that she should not pull her hair out when frustrated.

(Even if Pousshair potions conveniently existed).

Still, it was quite a lot of trunks. The trunks themselves were quite beautiful, and even more useful. The trunks were in the shape of a perfectly rectangular treasure chest. The faces were all solid dark green scales, but the edges and corners were ensconced in riveted bands of bright silver, and Harriet herself had graved a lot of tiny runes on it. They were more protected than anything else in this world, even Hogwarts (though, given how Hogwarts' protections had been used during her scholarship, that didn't mean a lot – but her trunks were highly protected indeed).

(Harriet would honestly _love_ to meet someone able to open one of her trunks, or even damage it).

(She wasn't holding her breath).

On the front of the trunks were seven latches that did not seem to be connected to anything, and looked like they were there for some decoration purpose more than anything else. But each of these latches opened a different compartment of the trunk, which were all magically enlarged.

Each compartment was the size of a little apartment, and contained thousands of shrunken trunks – which themselves had seven magically enlarged compartments. So yes, it was in no way a light packing, and in every way an organization _nightmare_.

As said before, the trunks were highly protected – nothing could destroy one : fire, magical means, blunt force – nothing. Furthermore, to open one, one would need a bit of her freely given blood (good luck), a sample of her magic (don't give up ?), and her Elder wand (yeah, right).

Considering that she was the only one able to use the Elder Wand, that noting and no one could ever take a sample of her magic without her authorization, and that her blood disappeared back in her body as soon as it had leaved her...

No, really, she was quite sure that her trunks were safe.

One contained each and every weapon that had been in her Vaults, as well as the ones she had commanded when in Japan. Magical, Goblin and Muggle ones, she had learned to use them all, and liked the different possibilities they offered (Goblins' absorbed every substance that made them stronger, and then could use that substance when used against enemies ; Magicals' had a whole range of uses depending on how they had been created, and for what purpose ; and Muggles' were perfect in their simplicity and efficiency).

Well, the trunks contained a lot of others trunks, but the final result was only one trunk, that she had called, with much originality, the Weapon Trunk.

Well, at least it was clear, and logical. As were the other names.

(And wizards were never known for their imagination anyway...).

Then there was the Gold Trunks. Yes, Trunks, with an 's'. Her fortune was so much that not even seven shrunken magically-enlarged-compartments trunks were enough to contain everything into one big not-shrunken Trunk. There were three Gold Trunks, containing jewels, jewelry, gold and mithril, since it apparently didn't exist in the Elemental Nations, but was damn useful for weapons.

She had quite a lot of this.

After this came her favorites, the Book Trunks. Four trunks, filled to the brim with shrunken trunks, filled to the brim with shrunken books. She was taking every single book that was hers, and that was quite a lot. She had even gone to Hogwarts' Come-and-Go room, and asked for the books it possessed. She refused to let forgotten knowledge disappear, and since she wouldn't ever come back, had painstakingly copied every single book she didn't already have by hand, because the books disappeared as soon as they were out of the Room, as did any magical copy she tried to do. And though the Fiendfire was supposed to have destroyed everything that had been inside the Room, it wasn't quite the truth.

Fact was, the Lost Objects Room was a magically created room that contained every object ever lost in Hogwarts. But there weren't really in the room – they were copies, assembled by Hogwarts, for whoever searched a lost object. And in the same way that they disappeared as soon as they were outside the room, they also couldn't be destroyed while inside, for they weren't really there.

So when Harriet had come here, hoping to save some hopefully intact books, she had been delighted to see everything exactly the same as it had been the last time she had been there, before the Fiendfire. So she had begun to copy them, by hand. It had taken quite a very, very long time.

Well, she had used an old, forgotten (and familial, which explained the 'forgotten' bit, since it had never been public knowledge) spell that slowed Time inside a room, which allowed her to do so more quickly than it should have been ; but that had been long and frustrating nevertheless. (Why, oh why couldn't she simply take the books out of the Room ? Why did the Room forbid it ? That _sucked_. She had never writen this much in her life before - and by then, she was 128 years old !).

Then, she had scoured the magical libraries all around the world (since languages weren't a problem for her now), and bought then again every single book she didn't already have. It appeared to be quite a lot indeed, and while some were very old books, the majority were more recent books she didn't have (whether because they were in a language not talked by a Potter, or a Black, or any of her Families before, or because with the Wars, her ancestors hadn't had time to purchase books, or simply because when there had been no descendant, the libraries hadn't been actualized after the last Head's death... Whatever the reason was, all of her libraries lacked the more recent books).

(And while an astronomical amount of knowledge had been lost to Time, a consequent amount had also been created in the meanwhile. More recent, more modern, but no less useful – for some of them. She had no need for the spell that whitened the teeth, thank you very much).

She hadn't bothered with the History books (why would she need them ? The other world's History was bound to be vastly different - and she had always hated them... Plus, she already had some in her Families' libraries), and the Divination ones (she was no Seer, and honestly doubted Seers existed in the Elemental Nations), as well as the books on Muggles written by wizards (entirely useless, the lot of them), but the rest was fair game. Everything that caught her attention, she bought.

Then, to be on the sure side, she had bought a whole new library of muggle books (science, chemistry, mechanic, informatics, even medicine... Everything that seemed interesting, or at least promising, she purchased).

Then there was the Clothes Trunk. A trunk that contained every type of clothes – magical ones, since their enchantments were ever-so-helpful, muggle clothes (one couldn't deny the majority of them were quite practical, or beautiful – muggles knew their fashion), and Japanese-style clothes, since, you know, the other world was similar to Japan. In this trunk were also tucked her trusty Basilisk-hide clothes.

Though she had felt bad wearing them in front of the different snakes she had encountered (she was literally wearing the skin of one of their own), she couldn't deny that they were dead useful. Impermeable to magic, could hardly be pierced, even by weapons, and supple and practical ; she wouldn't fight in any other clothes. And that was her trunks' material, since we're talking of this, which went a long way in explaining their security and durability.

In this case, Runes only enhanced the scales' natural strength and proprieties, for the most part (even Basilisks were hard-pressed to shrug a Giant's punch as if it was nothing, hence the need to use Runes to better protect her Trunks. And herself).

The Fabric Trunk contained a bit of every fabric of this world, but mainly the magical ones (the ones she was sure she wouldn't be able to find in the Elemental Nations). It meant what was left of the Basilisk Hide, Dragon Hide from multiple races (since each had their own proprieties), Acromentula silk, Unicorn skin (only when the Unicorn died by natural means, and it could only be wore by a virgin, though it was beautiful. It was traditionally used for wedding dresses, but not that much nowadays, since different times meant different customs, and virginity before marriage was now more an ideal than a fact. She doubted she would ever use one – she was quite the pessimist about finding love – but it was also used for newborns, to symbolize their purity, and if she could have a child one day…), and a whole lot of other materials.

She had learned the method used to treat the materials into useful fabrics, ready to be used for clothes. She wanted to be able to create her own clothes, in this other world. Thankfully, one of her Families owned a clothes' shop in France, and she had been able to learn the trade, after she swore she would never use it to do her own, private shop. Even if she was their owner, she had had to do an Unbreakable Vow. Clearly, that was a very serious matter for them, no matter that using it for her own gain would have only resulted in her loss – loss of her time, mainly. But the important point was that she now knew the well-kept spells to craft clothes.

Being able to find materials that didn't exist where she was going, was also one of the purposes of the Animal Trunk. Shrunken animals, as well as eggs, put into stasis, were waiting for when Harriet was ready to place them into a protected place, in her hopefully future Village. Now, she hadn't been able to take a dragon (they were sadly too big to hide, and she didn't think it was a good idea to introduce some into this world), but some Acromantulas for their silk were fair game.

(She would have _loved_ to take a Nundu. They were so useful, would especially be, in a ninja world – but she knew it wouldn't be a good idea. At all. For all that they couldn't kill her, they certainly could kill anyone else, and even her status as Mistress of Death held no power over them. A weapon you cannot control is a useless and dangerous one, and Harriet didn't want to cause countless deaths just because she wanted a Nundu).

Some Sombrals came with her, though. It was in their nature to follow Death, when they could. And they had been faithful companions, all those years. And, though she very much doubted anyone in her would-be new world, bar the youngest children, would be unable to see them ; it did not matter, since ninjas wouldn't be able to kill them.

See them, sure – but not kill. You cannot kill something that is already dead ; and though one could argue that they were alive, they simply weren't. Not strictly speaking.

No heartbeat, no blood pumping in veins, and impossible to kill. Only Time could take their so-called 'lives' – Time and Death, of course – and that, even if they did reproduce like any other race.

They were a strange species, one belonging to Death, and humans would never be able to kill one.

Well, fact was, she was as attached to them as they were to her, and she had decided to take them with her. No problems, since they freely followed her ; even though she was determined to find a way to hide them from ninjas' eyes.

She wasn't going to another world, only to be chased after like she had been in this world. It was bad enough if people learned (as they would end up to do) that she had magic, and could do amazing things – let's not talk of what they would do if they learned that she was Mistress of Death.

(But she had already decided not to take any Dementor or Levithold – it was too risky, and she didn't really like them anyway. Never had).

The other purpose of this trunk was a supply of Potion ingredients, since some – most, really – of the ingredients needed for potions didn't exist in the Elemental Nations – which explained the Vegetable Trunk as well. It contained plants and pots, as well as seeds of every magical and non-magical plant, with some books on how to treat them. She would need a very big greenhouse, several even, but she was determined to have them installed as soon as possible. She didn't really like Herbology, but she knew she would need to update her skills and knowledge in the growing of plants, even with the generous supply of matured plants she already had.

There was the Potion Trunk, containing a unimaginable amount of Potions (the useful ones, though, such as Veritaserum, Skelegrow, Polynectar – she somehow doubted they would ever need a Color-changing potion, or one giving flatulence to the drinker – though you never know). One of the shrunken trunks contained her own, private laboratory.

Then there was probably the most varied trunks so far, the Tool Trunks. It contained everything that could be useful, from Binoculars (mighty useful for spying) to Pensieves (to show them what she had seen in someone's head by using Legilimency, for example), or the ever-so-useful magical tents (the ones that make you wonder why, exactly, you have a house). It also contained cauldrons, brooms (though she would be the only one able to use them, but maybe if she had children –), some Foe-Glass (always useful for ninjas), and really everything she could think of. She refused to take muggle firearms though. Not only she didn't know how to use them, but ninjas were more about stealth anyway, right ? And using magic on a firearm often made it explode, so she couldn't just silence it.

And she was going into another world. She didn't want to take things from her first world, bar the magical ones (but those came with her being a witch. She would use them, to help the best she could, but ninjas would rarely be able to use them with the intention to kill).

Muggle weapons were way too dangerous, even in a world where death was a job. Harriet could honestly say that she simply didn't like them. They were too... cold. Unpersonal. Just... there was no art behind their use, no technique. Press the trigger, kill. A friend, a foe, an innocent – it doesn't matter. You cannot always control where the bullet will go. Accidents happened, and she had heard once about a child who had killed his father when playing with his gun... How was that possible ?

That was no weapon - that was mindless death, unnecessary destruction. And it was too cold.

Anyway, the last three of her trunks were the most important sentimentally.

They were the House Trunks – and they contained each and every object that was hers. The ones she had in her various houses scattered across the world.

From beds to carpets, from the silverware to the paintings, and from the old, preserved clothes to the old wands left in the Familial Rooms in her different Family Manors (Old Family never threw their wands away, they kept them as reminders. No one knew why, but it was Tradition, and not knowing the reason behind an action had never bothered wizards), she took _everything_.

While she was going to seal her houses, making it impossible for anyone to enter them ; she knew that one day or the other people would break through her wards. That was how it worked, they would create a new spell, or a new object which could break wards, and that would be it.

But they would never find anything in her houses. Her House-elves would make sure that they stayed in perfect condition, and she had already ordered them to stock the gold earned by her various enterprises in one of her Manors' private Vaults, having decided that should this eventuality happen one day – wizards breaking her wards – she would just send one of her Snakes to collect everything, leaving only dirt and dust to the greedy little bastards.

They would be expecting Eldorado (priceless books, mountains of gold and jewels, inestimable artifacts...), and they would find an empty place. They wouldn't even be able to take the houses, mansions, or castles for themselves – the Family Magic that impregnated the houses would forever reject them. They could, with a lot of time and dedication, break the wards ; not the houses' sentience.

They would gain _nothing_. She had gone to great lengths to ensure this.

So now, she was packed, and she was ready to go, ready to find another life – a better one, for her. She would miss no one, and knew she would not be missed either.

Her gold, her fame, her power, and the symbol they thought she was – yes, they would miss all of it. Greedily, they would think that they had lost something that was _theirs_ , not even considering that she had always been her own person, and that she owed them nothing. They would see the loss of a figure, not of a person. They would resent her for doing what she wanted, thinking she had taken something from them... They would never realize that it had been her _right_ , and that she had never been _theirs_.

Even her friends, the persons she had given so much for, would blame her for the world's disapprobation that would fall on them when everyone realized that she was forever gone – not just hidden in another country, and not dead either – just... gone.

And they would know, for they had the artifacts monitoring the magic of every witch and wizard this world had known. As long as the monitored subject was alive, then their orb was bright, even if they were hidden behind countless wards and protections destined to make them disappear from the surface of the world. There was even a rough approximation of their emplacement (generally the country they were in – though it was rarely helpful, what with portkeys and the floo being so easily accessible to any wizard worth their name, thus enabling them to disappear again should anyone come too close to them).

It wasn't checked often – very rarely, in fact, for Unspeakable were the only ones having access to the Room, and they were way too much invested in their research to bother with checking whether said witch was as dead as the world thought she was. But Harriet was pretty sure they would make an exception for her. If not because they were pressured by the ministry, then because they had always wanted to study her, and her apparent inability to die. She was sure they would want to see if she truly was dead for good, this time.

If the wizard died, then their orb darkened, losing the light and the warmth it had held.

And hers would be bright, as bright as it had ever been – but it would show no approximate emplacement, for the orb only knew of this world, and not another world. She would have, for all intent and purpose, really disappeared from this world (true), and that would astound them.

Her magic would still be here, alive ; but out of reach for them. Not dead... but not attainable. If she had died, then some of the wards she had cast around her proprieties would fall with her. Not the permanent ones – those were anchored to Runic Stones, and would hold for as long as the stones would – but the ones she had cast with her own magic, without support.

But even after her depart, they would still stand strong, for her magic wouldn't die. As frail as the bond would be, it would still exist. And as it would be sufficient for her House-elves, so too it would be for the wards. That, and the fact that her Seats would still be active, would be the definite proof that she wasn't dead.

They would forever search her, unable to understand that they would never be able to find her.

Yet there would always be hope in their darkened hearts, and Harriet laughed already, thinking about everything those... trash would do to try and find her.

Let them try.

She had won.

* * *

 _God._

 _Done_.

First part only, and the second one is even longer - and let's not even talk about the others after that... I will post as soon as I can. Hope you liked it ;)


	2. Ritual and Konoha

Hey !

You're not hallucinating - this _is_ the second chapter ! I'm glad I never said I would post regularly, because I have a feeling that will never happen. I sadly do love my inconsistency... Or something like that. Anyway.

Thanks to the reviewers for the reviews, and I hope you all enjoy this (very long) chapter... But on the bright side : dialogues !

Disclaimer : I own nothing (how sad is that ?) - but the plot is mine, thanks.

P.S : Someone asked me what Harried's third animagus form was. But I didn't say it on purpose ! So, anyone has an idea ?

And a lot of you were wondering when and how she would meet Kakashi. Well, I hope you won't be disappointed... because well, she followed her very simple plan...

Enjoy !

* * *

The day – or rather, the night of the Ritual, wasn't different from any other night in England, bar for one fact. While the black sky was barely lightened by stars and a full moon, half-hidden behind dark, ominous clouds (it was probably going to rain tomorrow), as any other night could have been ; this night was a peculiar one.

It was the night of Halloween, the day when the limit between Life and Death was at its thinnest. Wizards used to call it Samhain, before Muggleborn influence changed that fact. Harriet loved muggleborns, don't get her wrong – but she didn't like them more than she liked Pureblood (Voldemort's followers excluded, and for all that people liked to think that that meant _all_ of the Purebloods, such was not the case. Just saying – the Weasleys. And Longbottoms. And Lovegoods. And Potters, even if Harriet herself was a half-blood. And Bones. Let's not enumerate them all, thanks. Her point had been made).

All in all, Harriet preferred to call it Samhain, since it was the name used in most of the rituals used that night – not bloody and nefarious rituals, mind you, but rituals that called upon Magic, and honored the departed. Such rituals went sadly out of fashion quite a long time ago – as if calling upon Magic, Her who created them, was a _fashion –_ but Harriet had discovered them in old, important Family Books, and had endeavored to connect with the Being she loved above all else.

Because for all Magic had caused her great pain and grief, it was also the only light in her world, the thing that had saved her when she had been eleven and enduring the Dursleys' treatment – the wonder that had opened a whole new world to her. And though wizards let much to be desired (?) , the Magical world was _not_ the same as the Wizarding world.

She loved the first, and despised the second.

In all cases, she was quite happy to welcome Muggleborns in their world, even though she knew they would be discriminated. Despite the war, things hadn't changed a lot – Purebloods were on top, Muggleborns on the lowest, and Werewolves, Vampires, Veelas, and every other kind of Magical races were _creatures_. Still, she was all for their integration in the Wizarding world (if they were numerous enough, things would _have_ to change, wouldn't they ?)... Just not at the detriment of Wizarding's customs, traditions, rituals.

She could understand the Purebloods, on that point. Welcoming newcomers shouldn't mean forgetting and forsaking the Old Ways.

But apparently, the Wizarding world didn't know the signification of the world 'compromise'. Probably too stupid for that (she may have a grudge against them, the size of Hogwarts. Or Britain. Or something a little bit bigger, maybe).

Anyway, back to the subject – she called the night Samhain.

As a Necromancer, that had been the night where she had had to use all of her powers to block the calls of the dead – though she way too often ended up listening to their stories, and helping them the best she could.

'Save people' thing indeed. More like 'Help people, whether they're alive or dead'. It wasn't that strange of her to not make a difference between the two. She had always needed to help people – even if it only ever brought her pain, with the living ones at least.

Since this was the night upon which the barrier between the Living and the Dead was at its thinnest, a lot of the dead would rouse for but a few hours, whether in a ghost form... or rising their decayed bodies.

The first time _that_ had happened, Harriet had had quite the fright (the terror of her life, really – but there was no witness alive, and no one could prove _anything_ , so her pride was safe. Still, considering the absolute madness her life had been up until this point, 'the terror of her life' was saying something indeed). Thankfully, that had happened when she was at her parent's graves, for the anniversary of their deaths, thanking them for giving their lives for her. It meant, mainly, that there was no other _living_ person in the cemetery, hence no witnesses.

The wizards were too busy celebrating the end of the first war, as they had done ever since her parents' death... and wouldn't understand why she never mingled in those parties. Ungrateful, insensible bastards. Still, it meant that she had been alone, since few were the Muggles still up and out at midnight, especially in a cemetary, and that meant peace and calm.

She had been terrified nonetheless, and had had the dubious honor of hearing Death laugh for the first time – an horrible, grating sound – before She explained that the dead felt the need to seek her, and ask favors if they could.

You may laugh at her, mock her fright, but really, how would _you_ have reacted if you had been interrupted in your heavily emotional moment in front of your parents' graves by a rotting hand poking your shoulder ? Only to slowly, as if in a dream or an horror movie (yes, she knew those, Dudley had loved watching them at night when his parents were asleep... it had been easy for her to sneak downstairs and watch from the shadows – though maybe she shouldn't have, considering that her _life_ could be seen as her own, personal horror-movie) – only to slowly, so slowly, turn her head and coming face to... skull, she guessed, with what had _obviously_ been a person, and just as _obviously_ wasn't one anymore.

(The jaw hanging only by a few, stretched, rotting bits of muscle, and the yellow-ish dead eyes _looking_ straight at her from under sparse, falling and matted hair really did it for her. It _totally_ justified her ears-splitting scream and the explosion of her magic, which had disintegrated the _thing_ that was _quite clearly_ attempting to kill her).

(It _was_ , no matter what Death says. Don't _listen_ to Her).

(Harriet is _Mistress of Death_. She will _kill_ you if you so much as _doubt_ what she told you had happened).

(Not that she would tell _anyone_ ).

(Still, that gave a new meaning to the signification of having 'dead eyes'. Harriet _never_ used that expression ever again, even if she did meet someone, later, with particularly inexpressive and blank eyes).

She was now used to such things happening, and had learned to control her powers, of course. She didn't want to be taken for an evil witch, and no doubt the Britain Wizarding World would have immediately taken the occasion to call her the new Dark Lady, asking for her imprisonment and ultimate death, had they known that she could rise the dead and speak to long departed souls.

Not that they would have succeeded, you know, but they were enough of a bother for her right now, without adding a true, open man hunt after her. Mercenaries would be a pain in her _behind_ – and mercenaries there would be, there was always stupid people who overestimated themselves, or where desperate enough, for the right price.

So she had hidden her particular powers of hers, the ones that came with her Necromancy, that is ; and on Samhain always settled in deserted places, in order to let the dead find her in peace, without risking being disturbed by the odd muggle or wizard.

But this night, her powers as Mistress of Death were stronger than ever, since she was willingly using the Hallows' powers so she could Call Death. She had never used the powers granted by her title – had never seen the need – but this night, she would.

Death was... strange. Not bad, not good either – She was neutral and the very definition of apathy. She didn't care that people died, She didn't care that people lived. What She did care about was that some people tried to cheat Her.

Those were Her source of amusement (one of the very few feelings She could apparently feel) and anger. _No one_ cheated Her.

No one won, at least.

She had taken to follow Harriet sometimes, always unexpected, and rarely talking – though She had her moments. When She was in a talkative mood, She claimed that Harriet's life was interesting, amusing, and never boring. Death didn't like boredom. She was often bored, Time having no meaning for Her, and She couldn't go in a world and do everything She wanted. She couldn't interfere with mortals, not if some conditions weren't reunited.

The last time that had happened, She had created the Deathly Hallows (the Elder Wand, the Invisibility Cloak, and the Resurrection Stone, now all in Harriet's reluctant possession), and gave them to three brothers that had tried to cheat Her – and succeeded, for a time.

She had claimed the lives of the two eldest quite quickly – She was tricky like that – but the youngest _had_ managed to cheat Her, until such a time that he was ready to meet Her. As an equal. She had been sufficiently impressed by his action (the only man, in every world, that could virtually cheat Her indefinitely – and who just hadn't, but had accepted that Death had to come to everything when the time had come), and had thus decided to look over his descendants.

Not to protect them, She wasn't one to do that (though it _had_ happened for her to have favorites), but to see what would happen, to them and to Her Hallows.

And that had been hundreds years ago.

(When she had seen the Killing Curse being returned to its caster, and the mark on Harriet's forehead, many years later ; She had known. Known that she had found Her first, and last, Mistress. And She rarely, if ever, went against Fate).

Anyway, today would be the first time Harriet Called Death. And if all went well, probably the last.

Harriet was standing in a narrow circle of Fuinjutsu seals. They were supposed to act as an anchor, and send her to its twin, traced by her snakes in a place of their choosing, in the Elemental Nations.

(Harriet could admit she was nervous, though not for the reason you may think. Her snakes seemed to like pulling pranks on her, and she wasn't quite sure if they had decided to do it when choosing her place of arrival. She could only hope they hadn't).

(She did _not_ fancy, say, arriving in the middle of a Hokage's office. Go and explain _that_ ).

Around this circle was another circle, larger, and made of Runes. The circle was powered by Harriet's, and Gaia's magic. Sending herself into another world wasn't easy, after all. And since summoning a simple snake asked quite a lot of magic, then sending herself through the worlds' barriers would ask a lot more – especially taking into account that she had countless magical and muggle objects, as well as animals and plants, to send with her. There was more to travel than just Harriet.

And she absolutely _refused_ to leave so much as a _galleon_ of her painstakingly assembled Trunks behind. She most certainly hadn't taken all of this time to just lose everything.

She was standing straight and proudly, clad in her battle clothes. Basilisk-hide boots, Basilisk-hide pants, an enchanted black top, and Basilisk-hide battle robes. Her eighteen shrunken Trunks were securely tucked in a magically protected pocket, except for one simple gold trunk, that she intended to use in order to prove that she was not only wealthy, but also that her magic was real.

(She could _use_ it in front of them, but showing them a trunk accomplished two purposes in one, and it was pretty awe-inspiring for the novices. She herself had been suitably impressed by the available space inside a magical trunk. Strangely enough, it was more effective than, say, a fancy spell).

Her long, raven-black hair was up in a neat bun, held in place with magic and two silver, goblin-made pins, with emerald gleaming at the top. They were pretty – and they were coated with Basilisk Venom. Harriet used them as Senbons, in fact. She was quite good with them.

Her eyes were closed, and she was close to meditating, but wasn't. She was sending her magic through the seals and runes, powering them, feeling them activate bit by bit. She could feel Gaia's magic awakening at her magic's touch.

Gaia's magic was always there, but sleeping. Now, Harriet's magic was calling Hers, as was asked by the Ritual. She would be the one to power Harriet's travel. Death was the one who would permit it, thus rending it easier (and the one thanks to whom it was possible in the first place, since Death _was_ in this other world, and thus Harriet _could be_ there too).

She felt her magic pulsing through her body, and the Runes and Seals. Her right hand was clutching the Stone, the Cloak was draped around her shoulders, and she held the Wand in her left hand. She had become ambidextrous a long time ago.

She was also ready to use on their powers... for the first time since she mastered the Hallows.

* * *

It could have been a chilly night, but it was a warm one instead – all the more warm that Harriet's clothes were cold-resistant. A soft, soft wind was ruffling some leaves, but all in all it was rather quiet and still. Magic was concentrating in one place, and silence fell onto the Ritual.

Harriet felt the magic, pulsating through her veins, strengthening. The magics inherent to the seals and runes were merged with hers, and the Earth's magic was carefully intertwined within them all, powering everything.

It was her last chance at another life. A chance at Freedom, Liberty, a chance for _Harriet_. Only Harriet. She was trying one last time – if it failed, like everything before had failed, she would give up and live as a recluse.

Really, this was her last chance – her last _try_.

As the power augmented, Harriet concentrated on her power over the Hallows. It was a power like nothing else, and immediately it seemed that the temperature dropped. A deep mist slowly appeared out of nowhere, white and ghostly, progressively filling the area in silence.

The mist rolled and twisted, covering everything around the Runic circle. Strange, faceless forms could be seen in it, blending in shadows and opaque pans of mist threateningly. Whispers and murmurs could be heard, but no word was actually pronounced.

Maybe it was all in Harriet's head, or maybe it was some strange power of the Hallows'.

The whole area was now covered in the deep, strange mist ; except for what was within the circles. The vapor swirled around them, surrounding the Runes, curling around the symbols, and in the center of all was Harriet.

It was eerily, and scaring – an illogical, instinctive fear -, but Harriet didn't care. As Mistress of Death, the air charged with ominous omen and bearing the most ancient fear of all – Death – did nothing to her. At best, she was just distantly aware of it. It was part of her, whether she liked it or not, and so it could neither disturb nor scare her.

But even if it had, it wouldn't have been enough to stop her, for her concentration and determination were legendary. She _would_ undertake this Ritual successfully, and nothing would stop her – certainly not mere mist, however deadly and powerful and _otherworldly_ it could be.

But she wasn't aware of all of that. She didn't even see it. She only opened her eyes when the power was at its fullest, and when it was time to Call for Death.

"As Mistress of Death, I Call upon Death with the powers given to me by the Hallows. Answer me", she ordered, her voice steady and pulsating with power, in harmony with the waves of magic pulsing through the area by now.

The runes of the outer circle glowed in a bright emerald color, and Harriet could feel the magic that poured out of them. It was hers. They were Calling. She felt the magic pulsing through her body, through the earth and the air around her, and for a second, had the feeling that she could feel everything in this world, see everyplace, was everywhere.

The Hallows were vibrating in her hands, Wand and Stone clasped securely in her clenched hands, Cloak resting over her shoulders – she was protected from Death, unattainable. With or without the Cloak on, Death wouldn't be able to touch her, but this was a Ritual, an official Call. Decorum had to be respected, and though Harriet rarely was one for _decorum_ , she did respect Death enough to follow with it.

(She also hoped Death would grant her request, though she would do it whatever Her answer was, but it would be easier with Her help, and there was no need to antagonize the powerful Being needlessly, was there ?).

It stopped as quickly as it had begun, but already a weight seemed to have settled on the clearing. A presence, other than hers, that was suddenly here – or more precisely, that finally showed itself. A portal appeared, tearing reality and darkening the clearing, pouring a strange, black smoke in the clearing. The smoke expended outward at an alarming rate, swirling with the mist, corrupting it. Soon, the only colors were in deep, dark grey and black shades. It was even more ominous than before, and the very air chilled when a tall, thin figure emerged from the portal.

It didn't emerge as much as the smoke suddenly condensed in a strange shape. Harriet could only see a long, black dress, and nothing else. But she didn't need to _see_ in order to know who it was.

It was Death.

She could distinguish a long, thin scythe behind Death, and the only lights in the night by now were two eerily similar pairs of glowing green eyes.

Death and Harriet had the same eyes – or more accurately, the same eye color. An eerie green, deep and bright, and the exact same color as the Killing Curse. It seemed that those eyes could see past anything, through any barrier you may have constructed around you. They saw everything, and judged your very soul.

However, where Harriet's eyes had a warm light, shining with curiosity, weary hope, and Life, hidden behind carefully dressed protective walls ; Death's were cold, empty and freezing. They judged you, but you meant nothing to them.

Harriet's eyes pushed you to do better, to try and make her laugh, make her eyes shine and her heart mend ; and gave you hope if you had not any.

Death's eyes made you want to be dead, quite naturally, really. They were disturbing, in a more obvious way than Harriet's eyes were. They hold no warmth, no curiosity, no good feelings. If eyes were the soul's windows, then Death had no soul.

And if you knew you existed when being _seen_ by someone else's eyes, then you would die if Death looked at you, for She never saw your life or your story when She looked at you. She only ever saw your death.

And Harriet's, while not as deadly and crushing, still held a wild, savage glint that said to anyone who knew how to see it, that she had seen more than anyone, that she had done more too, and that nothing, _nothing_ would ever be able to make her yield. The beautiful fierceness and unadulterated pride of wild animals.

 _She_ was, in a strange way, a wild animal – and no one should ever try to submit her, for it would be their end. In that aspect, Harriet's eyes were as disturbing as Death's ones.

Harriet breathed deeply – it was time.

"You Called Me, Mistress ?", asked Death – and Her voice was the disturbing sound of gravestones grinding together – and how sad was it, that Harriet knew what sound that made ?

Harriet didn't even shiver.

"I have".

"What can I do for you, Mistress ?", rasped Death slowly.

Harriet wasn't fooled – she knew that Death already knew her intentions. She didn't think that her title was much more than just that – a title. While she _was_ immortal, and the only soul Death couldn't touch ; she also knew that if she was to ask something of Death that She didn't want to do, then She wouldn't do it at all, no matter what Harriet would say or _order_.

No one could control Death – not even Her Mistress. Paradoxically, no one could control Death's Mistress – not even Death.

Yet she didn't doubt for one second that Death would make her regret ever trying to force Her to do something, if she was insane enough to try such a thing.

(She wasn't, for the record).

"From the powers of the Hallows, I called You, to judge my request and grant me my wish", she said, following the steps of the Ritual.

"I will judge and decide", accepted Death.

"I want to traverse the barrier of this world, and go in another one. I want to find a new life, a new chance, and depart forever from this Earth", exposed Harriet.

"You speak of Life when I am Death. Why should I grant you your wish ?", She rasped, walking slowly around the circles, disappearing in the shadows when they were too deep. It was as if She was gliding, hovering just above the ground, dissolving in the darker places until only Her glowing eyes could be seen, fixed on Harriet – freezing and killing the plants under Her. It reminded Harriet of the Dementors – but somehow, _more_.

Harriet never moved, didn't follow Death with her eyes. She was looking right before her. She was focused.

"Because I am caged, there, and not happy. Because I am Your Mistress, and ask this of You. Because You are as bored as I am, and that me going to another world will entertain You if nothing else. Because You don't care either way", said Harriet – and she couldn't help but smirk darkly. "Because Death is not to be chained to a world She despise, and I won't be either".

Being around Death always seemed to make the darkest part of her soul emerge.

Death chuckled – gut-clenching sounds of newborns' wails of agony, and nails scratching on a blackboard – though, for that one, Harriet was glad to say that it was only her own perspective, and that she had never heard newborns being tortured.

It was true, though. Death was bored, and Harriet's life was a source of amusement for Her. It was never dull nor boring – Harriet wouldn't be able to endure it.

As said before, she needed action, needed the feeling of being useful and helping, needed the danger and adrenaline. The risk, the thrilling taste of success, after a difficult situation. A peaceful, soft, and precious life wasn't for her.

Not now, maybe not ever.

(There was a reason she had decided to explore old, forgotten, _dangerous_ places rather than just locking herself inside one of her Manor. It wasn't to perfect her tan).

(She didn't tan anyway).

"Because there is a price, for this travel, that I may be ready to pay. Because I will then owe you a favor", ended Harriet, calmly.

And it was true that she would have to pay something for this travel. One cannot cross the barrier of a world. Wizards are known to have travelled through Time, but never between worlds – they didn't even know other worlds and dimensions existed – and there was a reason for that.

One's soul is attached to one's world. They literally couldn't exist somewhere else. They are tied to a place, and when Death's servants come for them, they follow. It is different for every world – sometimes it is Reapers, other times Death Gods, or even Death herself, as an entity, who come and takes the souls.

But a Reaper couldn't take a soul that wasn't born on their world of jurisdiction. They had no _rights,_ no _power_ on other worlds' souls. That is why no one ever crossed worlds, even by accident – they were never authorized to do so.

Trying would kill the fool without fail, for the soul would be left behind, anchored to the world ; and the dead and soulless body would eternally float Nowhere, between worlds, and Damned.

Because their death would have been so unnatural, their soul would forever scream in agony, wandering unseen in the nights until the very end of the world.

But Harriet – Harriet's soul was out of reach for any Reaper, any God, and even Death Herself. It couldn't be taken – it was forever alive. So Harriet going to another world would really change nothing.

Her soul was only anchored to Harriet herself.

Furthermore, as Mistress of Death, she could go where Death was. Death was everywhere, every time – thus Harriet could go into another world. She was the only one able to do so.

Death outright laughed at that last answer – and this time, Harriet did cringe. Her laugh was nothing human, nothing kind, and even for someone like Harriet who had faced everything head on and persevered, it was a deeply disturbing sound.

"You are right. Very well, I shall grant you your request. Are you ready for My price ?"

"I am", she nodded.

"No one can see the ghosts in the world you want to go to. The souls pass in the Afterlife, and nothing will change that fact. You will not change it either, Mistress. I will block your Necromancer powers, you will not be able to use them", warned Death.

"... What if the dead attack me ?", asked Harriet.

And it was a good question. As Mistress of Death, the departed were naturally attracted to her, whether to ask for favor, answer, or eternal sleep. Some, though, were so full of hatred and loathing that they tried to attack her, maybe hoping to die once and for all. Those were driven by madness.

The dead could touch her. She was attuned to them – to Death – and ghosts could physically interact with her. If they learned that she couldn't protect herself from them – not anymore – they would harass her, and make her life a living Hell, ironically enough.

Harriet liked irony, but she doubted she would appreciate it on that point.

The dead were not bound to a single place, not the wandering spirits. Though some ghosts were indeed tied to a place, it was only those seen by every wizard or witch – those supported by magic. There were other types of ghosts, not all kind, and who could be full of malice.

Harriet didn't fancy going into another world only to be forever harassed by spirits.

"Smart Mistress", smirked Death with a pleased grin. Or what Harriet thought was a smirk, since Death's face was never visible. Harriet didn't think She even _had_ a face. Still, Death had that annoying habit of always testing Harriet, carefully selecting Her words to see if Harriet would see the loopholes in them.

Harriet had learned her lesson after the first year in Her company.

(It involved alcohol, dead raised for the occasion, Harriet disguised as a _zombie_ , and a small, terrorized village. Death could be childish like that. Harriet hadn't made the mistake again).

"You are still My Mistress. No dead can injure you. If some try, you are more than welcome to put their souls to rest. You will not be able to summon and see the dead, but you will be able to control those raised by others", She explained.

Harriet looked right into Death's eyes, sharply, eyes narrowing. There was Necromancers in this world as well ? Her snakes never told her anything about that.

"Your price is reasonable, and I will accept it", she answered simply, ignoring her own questions for now. There was no time for them in the middle of the Ritual – it had to be done before the sun even _thought_ about peeking at the horizon. "What are the favors You ask ?"

"My price is not yet entirely given, Mistress", warned Death. "You will like it, though, I think. You complained often about your immortality, and while I am not surprised that My Mistress wouldn't be afraid of Me, I decided to help you. In this world, you will lose a part of your immortality. While nothing and no one will be able to kill you, Time will resume Its course for you, Mistress. You will age again, until such a time that your body will fail you, and ultimately die"

Harriet's gasp stayed caught in her throat, eyes wide.

"I will be able to die ?", she asked, hope coating her question.

Death made a shrugging gesture, indicating it was not exactly true. Such a human gesture coming from Death was as disturbing as Her laugh had been, though in a different way.

"Yes and no, Mistress. You are My Mistress, you cannot die. But your body will. You will then join Me, much like an entity, as I am. You will be able to reincarnate yourself, or take your form in another world – but you will not be tied to _this_ body anymore. It is the best I can do for you", explained Death, not sounding sorry at all.

If fact, She didn't sound like anything particularly. She just talked.

Harriet swallowed – it was better than she could have hoped. Getting old... She had always thought she would never get to do that, thinking that she would die with Voldemort at best, or killed by him or someone (or even something, such had been her luck) at worst... So becoming old had seemed like an impossible, sweet dream.

Then she had become immortal, and the dream she had almost _had_ , escaped her grasp forever. So to learn that she would be able to _die_ , as much as she could die, of old age... That was a priceless gift. Death had to have known it.

"Thank You, Death. And You were right, I accept your price. Is there more, or will You tell me Your favors ?", Harriet asked, recovering quickly, pushing her rushed thoughts in a closed off room in her mind, silencing them.

She would think about it later. A Calling Ritual for Death is no place for wonderings. Not when she could almost _touch_ Freedom with her fingertips.

"Men from every worlds and every time have tried to escape Me. None ever succeeded in this foolish quest, and none ever will. They always fall in front of Me when Time is due. But there is two souls, in this world, that I want you to claim for Me", said Death, finally stepping back to where She had first arrived in the clearing.

She had walked slowly through smoke and mist, walking with fantastical shapes, around the circles – never entering one.

"You will have them", immediately accepted Harriet.

She knew Death would never ask for an innocent's soul – She had no care for them. Every soul came to Her at a point, She had no need for Harriet's help – nor the interest for it.

The only souls She asked for were the ones of immortals, the ones She couldn't touch Herself (exactly like when She had asked Harriet to destroy some long forgotten Horcruxes, buried under magically hidden and deserted pyramids or temples. They were useless and wouldn't resuscitate their makers, the pieces of soul were too weak for that, but they irritated Death nonetheless and had to be destroyed).

"I do not care how much time you will take", She allowed. "As long as I have them before your body's death. I will give you their names when I so chose it".

"Understood", nodded Harriet, again. "I accept both your prices and request".

"Then, I have judged your wish, and decided to fulfill it. You may go", accepted Death, finalizing the Ritual.

Just as Her words ended, the wind suddenly began to raise. The clearing that had until now been calm, and otherwise quiet except for the two voices and the mist's murmurs, was suddenly agitated by a burst of wind coming from nowhere. It twirled around the circles, making the smoke dance and swirl wildly.

The same portal that had brought the smoke reappeared, only this time, it was sucking the mist back, pushed by the wind. Death dissolved in smoke and shadows again, Her glowing green eyes the last part of Her to fade in the black, swirling smoke. The wind picked up, howling in Harriet's ears, and it suddenly entered the circles.

Harriet felt it rage around her, and it was charged with a strange magic. It was old and young, sentient and hollow, cold and yet strangely warm to her. It was Death's magic. She had always felt it around her, but it was the first time she could actually realize it and pinpoint what it was. It was a feeling that had followed her for as long as she could remember.

But it was the first time she consciously recognized it.

The magical wind hurled around her, and she barely had the time to catch her pins before they disappeared in the smoke swirling madly everywhere. Her carefully brushed hair immediately became untamable again, right before they were too dancing wildly with the wind. She distractedly felt her pins' poison burning softly through her veins, where she had cut herself when catching the pins.

She didn't even look down, knowing her poison could do nothing to her – no poison was efficient against her, and certainly not her own. Her venom was the most potent of every world, she was sure of it (and her snakes had confirmed), and nothing less potent than it could ever affect her.

Not that she would die anyway, since she was immortal – except against Time, she remembered with a start. She felt a smile stretch her lips unconsciously. The poison dissolved in her blood, but she didn't even realize it.

She was watching the portal. It was sucking the smoke in, and she felt it tug at her, a force pushing her towards it. It was an ominous, black color ; and seemed to swallow every light there was. Not that there was many, but the green light of the runic circle seemed muted, now that it was there.

It was frightening, this portal. It reeked of death, of impossibility, of unknown. But it represented her Freedom, her Liberty, her new Chance.

Her last Chance.

She had been betrayed too many times to keep going, if this try revealed itself as crushingly disappointing as the others had been. It was truly the last time she tried.

And because it represented all of this, Harriet felt that she had never seen anything as beautiful than this portal. It represented Life, for her, rather than Death. It represented... _everything_.

She was suddenly aware that her Fuinjutsu seals were glowing as well, and felt deeply satisfied by this. She knew she had succeeded, of course, else she wouldn't have tried the Ritual now. But it was the first time she was using seals on such a large-scale effect, tied to Runes, and she still wasn't an expert in Fuinjutsu (far from it, though she could act as one, thanks to her knowledge of Runes. In many aspects, Runes were far more advanced than Seals. They offered a lot more possibilities, and flexibilities – yet Seals were... _different_. Purer. Maybe stronger).

The Seals were tugging at her, and she could feel the Runes pushing her, helped by the magical wind. The portal was nearing her, and she could feel the strength of the attraction exerted on her, body and magic.

She took a step, and disappeared in the darkness, closing her green eyes. For the first time since too many years, a sincere, hopeful, _joyful_ smile was painted on her lips. Then, Harriet Dorea Potter-Black-Peverell-Slytherin-Griffindor-Ravenclaw forever disappeared from Earth.

For a moment, there was absolutely no light whatsoever. Then all the smoke was back in the portal, which disappeared soundlessly. The Seals had disappeared as soon as Harriet's feet had left the ground they were etched on, and the Runes were slowly losing their magic, dissolving as well in the Earth.

A moonlight ray suddenly pierced the clouded night, but it lightened only an empty clearing, where potent magic was slowly disappearing in the air. The sky cleared, stars like tiny diamonds shining as brightly as they could, valiantly providing light to everyone that was out tonight.

In the clearing, as in the forest surrounding it, animals' sounds reappeared, and Life cautiously returned to normal, blackened plants straightening and going back to a healthy green. A few hours later, as the sun was dutifully lightening the world, it was as if nothing had ever happened here.

And no one would ever know what had happened in this place.

* * *

Harriet was nowhere, and everywhere. She was no one, and she was so utterly _herself_ , that for the first time she felt completely free. Free of burdens, free of thoughts, free of past, and even free of body.

She felt as if she had no form, but was only essence. Her, with no artifice, no masks, no lies. Nothing to tie her down.

She couldn't hide, but felt she didn't want to. There was no one, there, only her and her magic, hugging her presence. There was no north nor south, no up nor down. There was nothing, and everything.

It was exhilarating.

She wanted to laugh, but she didn't know if she even had a mouth. She felt at peace, one she had never felt before, not even when she had just killed Voldemort. Back then, she had just felt hollow. Now, she was _feeling_.

It was the first time of her long life, that Harriet felt peace in her soul. It was the first time that she _knew_ what peace was. It was a strange, but marvelous feeling. She wanted to stay like that for as long as possible. Nothing mattered.

It seemed to last for eternity, and ended way too soon. A tug on her soul and magic jerked her away, strengthening slowly, and directing her in a given direction. She was so utterly satisfied, then suddenly it ended, and there was ground under her feet.

Literally coming back to earth was violent.

* * *

She was standing in a fading Fuinjutsu seal, the one traced by her snakes to act as her anchor in this world. All around her, there was green and brightness. The sun was high, through surrounded by ominous dark clouds, but it shined warmly on the world while it still could.

Despite the clouds, announcing a storm soon to come, it was warm and calm. All around Harriet, tall trees with luscious green leaves let her know that she was currently standing in a forest – in a clearing, to be more accurate.

It was a small clearing, with no signs of human life – except, maybe, for the kunais scattered across the ground, and embedded in tree trunks, as well as the broken branch here and there. Her eyes momentarily widened, and she quickly checked that her trunks were still safely in her pocket.

Her fingers brushed across the reassuring coldness of the shrunken basilisk hide (it would have been impossible to shrunk them, if not for the runes engraved in the trunk, for basilisk hide was absolutely resistant to magic), and the soft hum of her own magic.

Those kunais weren't hers – but she wouldn't have bet too much on this, given her legendary luck. Thankfully, it appeared that her painstakingly packed trunks were still perfectly secure in her magically protected pocket. Thank Merlin for small favors.

(Or, you know, Death and Magic).

There must have been a fight here, recently, for the kunais weren't covered with moss and grass, but there was no presence for miles around her – none that had a human soul, at least – so she was safe on that point. No prank from her snakes, no unwanted stranger she would have to suppress the memories of, no need to hurry or hide.

That moment was hers.

Harriet breathed deeply. The air was pure and clean, like nothing she had ever breathed. There was no gas, no pollution in it. It seemed to cleanse her, and with each breath she took, she felt her shoulders lose the apprehension that made them tense.

Her native world may be way more advanced than this one, but it was also way more destructive. If she had had to choose where to live, between this world and her old one, even without her past, she would have chosen the Elemental Nations... purely based on the quality of the environment. She had yet to see if this world was better than her old one, inhabitant-wise.

The only sounds around her, were the nature's own. Birds were chirping an unknown song, wind softly whispered through the trees, and small animals moved here and there, shuffling through leaves and bushes. It was truly wonderful, peaceful, idyllic.

Harriet immediately felt a feeling of loss. It wasn't something she had expected, truth be told – but it wasn't a feeling tied to her mind. She wasn't missing her world, or her past – that she very much wanted to leave behind – and didn't even regret what she had done, though it had a taste of finality... There was no going back. No, the feeling of loss pertained to something more primal, more natural, instinctual even.

The Earth's magic, that she had bathed in since her birth, was gone. It was something she had never really taken note of, something that had always been with her, to the point that it had faded in the background, like a given. The sort of thing that you are so used to, that you realize how much it meant to you only when you lose it.

Like a mother's presence, enlacing you wherever you are – until a cold feeling of loss seize you when she dies. Harriet knew, intellectually, that Earth had her own magic. She had herself asked for Her help in her Ritual, using it to power her circles. But it was only now that she was realizing that while soft and quiet, it had accompanied her everywhere and every time, without fail.

Whether she was at her best or at her worst, it had always been here – not caring, _per se_ , but... here enough that she had never really been _alone_. It was a new realization, for her, one that strangely tightened her throat.

This realization came with the bittersweet feeling you have when you realize what you had sacrificed for freedom. Freedom always had a price, and up until then, Harriet had always thought that the price she would pay – leaving her parents' graves behind, her manors, her house-elves, who had become a make-shift family, and everything she knew – was an easy one. One she really didn't mind paying, one she would not really feel the loss of.

And no there was this... emptiness, inside her. Oh, it wasn't a glaring one, or even overwhelming... But there was a sudden silence in the back of her head, where the Earth's magic had always buzzed faintly. Harriet didn't regret her choice, not now, and probably not ever (she would have never been left in peace, in her native world, and she knew she would have had to fight the same people she had fought for before. In this world, she was no one, and literally _no one_ knew about her right now), but she no knew that it was a feeling that would never really leave her. It would fade in time, like the Earth's magic had faded in the background long ago, but right now...

Right now, she was feeling the loss keenly.

It wouldn't last forever, of course, but she would remember the motherly embrace of her Earth's magic, the only motherly embrace she ever consciously remembered feeling. Mrs Weasley's didn't count. They had always been a bit... suffocating. Not easy, not loving, not warm – strong and invasive, sometimes.

No matter. She looked up, eyes closed, and laughed.

It was laughing, in order not to cry – she couldn't cry now. She hadn't cried in so long, not since Sirius' death, except when she had nightmares. Then, she woke up in tears, but they would quickly abate once she was back to her senses. She disliked crying – always had. It was a mark of weakness, or so she had always been told by the Dursleys... no one ever told her otherwise.

So despite the unplanned for feeling of loss, despite the realization that _she had done it_ , that her old world had been too much and she had had to _flee_ in order to be herself – despite the fact that no, there was no going back, and that she would _never_ make up with the persons that had been her first friends, _ever_ , and who had been with her through the life-threatening seven years she had spent at Hogwarts... Despite everything, despite the mess of emotions raging inside her mind and heart right now, she laughed.

She had just gained her freedom, after facing all of the hardships _Fate_ and Life had sent for her. Why would she cry ? So she laughed, and laughed so much, it became liberating.

And exhilarating.

Fresh air caressing her skin, brushing softly her messy black hair, she was standing tall and freely. She had done it. She let that knowledge come at the front of her mind, said it in all the languages she knew, let it roll on her tongue and let the mirth the words created burst inside her.

She had succeeded !

Oh, how she would love to see the wizards' faces ! They had never planned this, had they ? In all of their plans to take her inheritance from her, and take control of her, they had never planned for Harriet _leaving_ their world altogether ! They could all burn in Hell, now. As far as Harriet was concerned, she was done with them.

She had been done with them since a long, long time already – but now, it was _real_. Because not only _she_ was done with them, but there was nothing _they_ could do about it now. They could try anything they wanted, they would never be able to reach her.

Now, they could vote however much they wished. It would mean nothing, would change nothing. She had won, again, against an enemy worse than even Voldemort. Voldemort, she could fight against. She had fought against, with everything she had. She had never had any hope of being accepted by him, nor had she ever wished for his acceptance, and it was an open, magical fight.

Both of them knew who the enemy was, and both of them knew what to expect. Roughly. (He probably hadn't expected her to best him).

But against the wizarding world, what could Harriet do ? There was so much enemies, she didn't know how to fight. She couldn't fight with magic, because she wasn't attacked with it. If she retaliated by violence, she would be in the wrong, at fault, and a monster.

She was attacked with politics, greediness, and slander. They used words, and for all her inner Slytherin, Harriet wasn't that good with them.

She could use them, and win people, but she was honest to a fault (she loathed lying. Her relatives always lied to her, and she refused to look like them, even in a single point), and in politics such qualities weren't an advantage. She had had to hide who she was for so long, that she couldn't do it anymore – refused to do so. She wouldn't do any concession on that point.

So how could she have fought without losing the last thing of importance that was still hers – herself ? How could she have succeeded, without playing by _their_ rules, thus becoming what _they_ wanted ?

She would have lost before even beginning. She didn't know their traditions, their customs, and in a hundred years she had never learned any, except the obvious ones. After the war, they had refused, criticized, and ridiculed her, because she wasn't a perfect Heiress. She had tried nonetheless, because of Ron and Hermione's insistence, but she was done taking abuse from anyone.

She had then decided that if she didn't like _her_ , after all she had done for them, then she wouldn't try and become someone _else_ , someone up to their expectations.

She had given too much, she refused to give herself.

So she had never really learned – magic was way more interesting and useful. What interest could she have in learning how to behave like a proper Lady, when she could learn a spell that created the animal of her choosing out of air and earth ? (Of course, she had to know said animal before attempting it, but it would have been too easy otherwise. Harriet had never said 'no' to a little challenge).

Anyway, she had never had any interest in learning rules that considered her to be a _property_ of males. And now, she would never have to learn (though she knew how to act her part as an Heiress, put a polite, refined, aristocratic mask, for a bit ; after having to suffer through multiples balls she had been dragged to by Hermione and Ron before she broke her friendship with them some knowledge had stuck).

And she would never have to fight for those ungrateful bastards ever again either. No matter what happened to them – a new Dark Lord, serves them right ; or a riot from magical creatures, even _better_ – she would never have to fight their battles for them every again.

They could try as much as they wanted, she had already won this particular war. She would never see them again, not if she could help it, and they would never be able to do anything against her.

So she laughed all of her regrets and insecurities out ; arms extended on either side of her body. She laughed as the constricting weight around her heart disappeared, and she felt as if she could fly without needing wings. She felt that light.

She didn't stop laughing when a cold raindrop fell onto her cheek. She didn't open her eyes, either, when suddenly the sky broke with a thundering sound, and all the water contained in the clouds poured down on the earth. The soft thumping sound of the raindrops on and around her was peaceful, and she felt the water dampening her hair and clothes – but found she didn't care.

She stayed right in the rain, laughing and _breathing_. There is something in a storm on a sunny day, something so _alive_ and _warm_ , something beautiful. Powerful. Unrestrained. But soft, reassuring. Cleansing.

After a while, Harriet felt the quiet, neutral energy around her, that wasn't magic but was everywhere like it had been – chakra.

It was utterly neutral, not welcoming her but not rejecting her either. It wrapped around her, like it wrapped around everything, when her Fuinjutsu seals finally ended dissolving into nothingness.

It was neutral, and it was new – exactly as her life was right now. Neutral and new – full of possibilities and hope. Everything could happen. Harriet was determined to face the future as she had always had – head on. Regrets had no place in her life, not anymore. She was determined to let her past behind.

Her bill was cleaned.

Despite the rain, it was still warm and bright. Her drenched clothes were sticking to her skin, but she wasn't cold. She was smiling uncontrollably, so much it hurt her cheeks. There weren't used to such exercise.

She finally opened her eyes, looking around her in interest. Her smile, honest, true, and so full of life, widened. The clearing she was standing in was full of snakes – coiled on the ground between forming puddles, hanging from trees, hiding under brushes.

They were all looking at her, and she heard their pleased hisses. Their Queen was back in this world, and soon back in their realm, if only for a few hours. They would be able to clear their name, get free of Orochimaru and Manda, and finally get their respect back.

They would stop being looked down upon by the other summons (though they didn't care much for those sticky toads), and they would be back to Konoha.

Speaking of this, thought Harriet, making her first step in this world ; she would have to find her way there. Soon.

But, she mused, as she walked slowly towards her snakes, that was for a later time. For now, she had a Sannin to find, questions to ask, snake to punish, and Contract to get back.

Her smile lessened, becoming a smirk. She was needed, she had something to _do_. She didn't know of what tomorrow was made of, she didn't know if something unexpected would happen – probably. Her heart was pounding in her ears – she could literally do anything, from there.

No one knew her.

 _No one had the smallest idea that she existed !_

She was in front of a white page, and she could do absolutely _everything_ from there. If she wanted to become the worst kind of people there was on this world – she could ! If she wanted to become a nurse, a butcher, hell, even a _teacher –_ she could !

She could do absolutely everything she so wished. No one knew her, or even _about_ her. Her name held no history, no interest. No one could judge her.

She was herself. Even if she had her body back, which she didn't feel when she had been floating nowhere before touching the ground, she was still _herself_. No expectation, no one knowing her name, no past following her everywhere.

Just Harriet – not even that. Just an unknown woman, in a world full of unknown people.

She ignored her damp clothes – she would dry them magically as soon as the rain stopped, or simply take a bath in one of her magical tents. She had put her battle clothes on because she didn't know where she would land, (facetious snakes and all that) and better be prepared than sorry.

She had already decided to present herself as a Lady – an Hime, in this world. No matter the world, money and lineage were important, and would open her many doors. Money would make sure she would be accepted in a ninja Village – they needed money to survive, after all, and wouldn't turn her away if she admitted to being rich. Better go all out and say she was rich like Croesus, than try to justify where her gold came from. Better face the other lords' hypocrisy (though they could surprise her, she wasn't holding her breath) than the ninjas' suspicion that she was a thief.

She wasn't, for the record. The only thing she had ever stolen was food, when she had been desperately hungry.

So several kimonos were ready for her use, and she very much intended to use them as soon as she came in contact with important people (such as what they called the Hokage, in this world). But right now, combat clothes were good enough.

And rain couldn't go through them anyway, though it could very well go under them by running down her exposed skin.

She disappeared through the trees, magically recovering the forgotten kunais, and stocking them in a bottomless pouch. You never know when you might need some – and it would help her see the differences between this world's kunais and her native's, if there was any. It was sure that there would be some, considering that her world's were for competition mainly ; and this world's were used – perfected – to kill.

It was a literal business.

Slaloming through trees, making almost no sound under the drumming rain, she walked slowly, allowing her slithering friends to keep up with her.

She had a Sannin to find.

While she had already fought, against stronger enemies, it had always been with the crushing weight of the disaster that would follow should she lose. Everyone's lives literally reposed on her shoulders. It was the first time she would fight for herself, and her snakes, and without the world's future laying in her hands.

She was fighting for herself only.

She had never felt that alive, in all of her life.

* * *

Tall, strong walls were standing in an immense clearing, encircling a village. They were so tall Harriet had to look ridiculously up in order to see where they ended. She had never been tall (damn the Dursleys !), but it truly was ridiculous.

Though, those were mighty walls. From what her snakes had told her, they had only been breached once, six years ago, during the Kyuubi's attack. They were good walls, if it had taken the strongest of the Tailed Beasts to breach them (though, granted, even the weakest of the Bijuus would have had the same success. It just had never happened).

They were of a dark brown color, but even then, it didn't quite manage to hide the brown stains of blood, dried on them. There was also some smoke stains – they had seen death and explosions, alright. Those walls had seen war, and survived.

While less respect-worthy than if it had been people (though Harriet knew that every ninja in this village – no, this _world_ , probably _–_ had seen battle and survived), Harriet knew the worth of a strong, trusty wall.

How many wards and walls had failed, during the wizarding war ? Too many to count.

Those walls were encircling what had the potential of becoming her home.

In the two weeks she had spent in the Elemental Nations, she had never felt so at peace, so _right_. Almost as if she had been _made_ for this world (and bar the magic she had, she fit so well here, it was amazing. Harriet wouldn't be surprised to learn Destiny had planned for her to come there. She didn't like Destiny, or Fate, or whatever you wanted to call Her – but she felt that she couldn't fault Her... This time).

But she needed a Village – a Ninja one, in fact.

As said before, she didn't have chakra. What she had was magic – which could easily be considered as a kekkai genkai, in this world. But it was a cheated one. There was nothing she _couldn't_ do – and as such, she didn't think she was narcissist in thinking that she would have all of the Ninja Villages after her.

They would surely try to capture her, and breed her, in order to have more magic users (yeah, right. They could always _try_ ).

While Harriet wasn't worried they would ever succeed, she didn't fancy having to live her (now limited) life on the run. She could hide perfectly (she had practice, since the Horcruxes' hunt – well, that, and _magic_ ), but didn't want to live a life hidden, always having to look over her shoulder to see if they weren't catching up with her. They were way stronger than wizards, after all. And while they couldn't kill her, nor capture her (forever, at least. She could always escape, even if she ever was knocked out by one of them, as soon as she was back to herself. It's not as if they knew how to block _magic_ , after all. A quick apparition and she would be out of wherever they would have tried to lock her), that didn't mean it wouldn't be an enormous bother.

She hadn't exchanged a shitty life for a slightly less shitty one. No way.

So she had decided to willingly rejoin a Village. Now, she hadn't chosen it lightly. She had chosen Konoha for a reason. Reasons, in fact.

Not only was it the original affiliation of her snakes (this way, they wouldn't forever be labeled as traitors), but Konoha's mindset was the one she liked best. The way they didn't see their ninjas as mindless tools – that, and their conviction in teamwork.

Enemy shinobis going into a fight with Konoha knew that rather than one-and-one matches, like they would face should they be against any other Village, with Konoha it was always going to be a melee – and rarely in their favor. Konoha ninjas fought in team, with each knowing their teammates' strengths and weaknesses, and knowing how to fight with them.

They were even more dangerous for this – for all that the other Villages mocked them for their 'softness'.

That was this softness, that had also attracted Harriet. Konoha was the only Village that accepted differed payment, or accords in means of payments. If one didn't have enough money for a mission, Konoha would try and find another way for him or her, or them, to pay.

Those were the reasons why Harriet had chosen Konoha. She had more hopes for this Village than for any other – but that didn't mean she would accept everything they said.

She was determined to be accepted as she was, and nothing else. By nature, she was a leader, though a reluctant one. She was better as a lone wolf, but she knew how to give orders. She was less good at taking them. Had been, once, when she had been very little – but that had left a bitter taste in her mouth, and she had now an almost pathologic inability to play by the rules. It came from her deep distrust in adults, and considering that they had been the ones to give orders and rules for most of the time she had been around people, trying to control her life and actions... her first reflex when given an order was to see how she could avoid it.

Whether by simply saying 'no', as she had done more and more often once adult, or by finding ways around it, it didn't matter. She rarely followed orders if they went against what she wanted, or if she disliked them. She _could_ follow them if they were good, if the person issuing them knew what they were doing... She had done so, during the war. Hermione, mainly, was a bossy person, and Harriet had rarely felt the need to go out of her way and work around her.

After the war... well, let's say that Harriet's trust in Hermione had melted like snow in a desert. And thus she hadn't taken orders from her anymore.

Thankfully, ninjas were not fond of rules either. Or rather, they knew them all in order to better break them. That was fine by Harriet, though she knew that they _lived_ by what they called the 'Ninjas Rules'. She also knew that the best of them considered the Rules more as a guideline. Well, she hadn't read the rules yet, hadn't managed to get her hands on them, but she could guess what they said.

So yes, ninjas followed rules – more, they followed their Hokage's orders whether they disliked it, or whether it meant their death. The Hokage's words were absolute... and that was something Harriet wouldn't accept. She would never blindly follow someone – not again.

But she knew how to follow orders, if it came down to that – though she much more preferred to be given a mission, and have the freedom to accomplish it as she wanted. The stricter the orders, the less inclined she was to follow them. Still, follow them she could, and she also knew how to work in a team. Hermione, Ron and herself hadn't been called the 'Golden Trio' for nothing.

As said before, she knew the importance of teamwork, and as such knew how to fight with someone. She also wasn't too proud as to refuse advice from someone better informed than her. Many times, she had encountered wizards who knew more than her on a subject, and she had dutifully listened to them – until such a time that she didn't need to listen anymore, because she knew as much as they did, if not more.

She didn't like depending of someone else. It came with her childhood.

Still, the person issuing the orders couldn't be anyone. They would have to have won her respect, even her trust, and that was no easy feat.

(Dumbledore had, once. Had won her respect and trust, just because he had been the one to open the Magical world to her – even if it technically was Hagrid, the half-giant had heavily insisted that it was all thanks to Dumbledore's actions. And she had been young, naïve, hopeful, blinded. Not burnt enough by betrayals yet. That's how Dumbledore had been able to somehow control her, better than anyone else had ever been able to do).

(It only made _his_ betrayal all the more painful).

But she had never _submitted_ herself, to anyone. She even rejected the 'Impero', since the very first time it had been cast on her. She had been fourteen, with an escaped Deatheater cosplaying as her DADA teacher... Quite the normality, in her life.

But there, she would have to recognize someone as her leader – the Hokage.

She would have to judge the man, of course, but she was confident that she would be able to trust this man. She would never bow to him (neither Harriet nor Death ever bowed to anyone – they literally _couldn't_ ), but she could, should the need arise, take direct orders from him (except if it was stupid orders, in which case she would make him listen to reason, even if she had to _force_ him). The rest of the time, she would just take missions. She could follow mission objectives.

Well, she knew she would have to wait a bit for that – they were a ninja Village. They were _nothing_ if not _suspicious as Hell_. But she would manage. She always did.

Still, if they didn't accept her and her terms, she would just have to go to another Hidden Village, right ? No matter which (except Mist, since they seemed to have a bit of something against kekkai genkais in this moment, if her snakes were to be believed).

(And there was a civil war. She would do her very best to avoid the place, thank you. She really didn't want to go and _search_ for problems, or willingly take part in another war).

And if none of the Village was satisfactory, then she would just wander through the Nations, ninjas hot behind her ass. A shitty life, but a better than her last one – and a better one than the one she would have had should she had to submit herself to a Village she had no loyalty for.

Not that they would ever be able to force her, and not that they would ever be able to find her if she wanted to hide ('cause _hello_ , _magic_. In extreme cases, she would just put repulse-muggles wards around the largest of her tents, and live happily in the Caste (yes, a castle-tent, because why ever not ?), going to do missions of her own and disappearing back in as soon as she was done.

 _Freedom_.

Yet she knew she would become crazy, because for all that she liked to try and convince herself, she wasn't made for loneliness. She had been, once (Dursleys), but she had known friendship – even if the end had been painful, Ron and Hermione _had_ been her friends, her _siblings_ – and now that she had tasted it, she craved it, even if she knew how badly it could burn.

She knew she would need people to talk to, to see, people knowing her and people she knew ; people she could fight with and laugh with and live around if nothing else.

Yet she would never lessen her standards. She was too proud for that, and had been betrayed too many times. She knew concessions, and had made too much of them already. She was ready to make some more, because no one in the Elemental Nations had ever betrayed her, but there was some things she refused to ever abandon.

Well, she would see, she decided, returning to her study of the walls.

She was standing at the edge of the forest, at a small distance from the gates. She wasn't hiding, but given that she was using the invisibility power of the Cloak, it was as good as if she was.

She had followed the path up until there, and had seen a team of shinobis from Konoha racing above her towards their Village. They had been quick, but she had been able to make that they were Jonins, coming back from a mission.

They had the standard uniform, so it wasn't hard to tell. That green vest was a dead giveaway.

(She was quite satisfied with herself, realizing that her training _had_ been successful, and that she could now see people and things moving at high speeds. She had trained in her world, but there was nothing better than certainty).

She still found a bit strange that ninjas preferred to run through the trees when there were perfectly good roads, but she had to admit that it was quicker that way (though she was still favoring the roads for now. She wasn't hurried, after all). They hadn't seen her, since she was hiding her presence with invisibility and an 'Ignore-Me' ward, but Harriet was reasonably certain that they were very high ranked nins.

The team was still at the gates, speaking to the two Chunins guards, when she arrived a few minutes later. Harriet knew what they were doing – a show of strength.

They were probably some very good and infamous ninjas, of that she was sure now. Them staying there after a mission showed their strength, resilience, and power. They were not wounded, not tired, not stressed, if they were taking the time to chat with the guards.

In truth, they were maybe one of this aforementioned things (though probably more tired than anything), but it was a warning. A warning to spies, and enemies.

For you see, Konoha was dangerously weakened.

Eight years ago, the Kyuubi's attack cost them their Hokage, as well as a lot of ninjas' lives. Three years later, a scheme orchestrated by Kumo began with the attempted kidnapping of the Hyuuga Heiress, Hinata, at the age of three ; and ended with the death of their best Jonins, the Hyuuga Clan Head's twin. Hinata's father, Hiashi, killed the kidnapper, but since they had no proof of his misdeed, Kumo had been in its right to ask for Hiashi's life in retribution, the kidnapper having been Kumo's ambassador for a peace treaty between Konoha and Kumo. Hiashi's tween, Hizashi, had taken his brother's place – but one of Konoha's best Jonin had died nonetheless.

Then, only a little less than one year ago, four years only after Hizashi's death, occurred the Uchihas' massacre.

One of their stronger Clans, annihilated in a night, by one of their own ninjas – a member of the very same Clan, Itachi Uchiha, now a missing nin.

All of this had happened a few years after the Third Great Shinobi War. It had been a very rough time for the Village, with a lot of losses and hardships. They were weakened, and many, if not all of the other Villages, were trying to infiltrate them, in order to see if they were weakened enough for an invasion (even in this state, they were still rumored the strongest of the Major Villages, with none other than The Professor, Hiruzen Sarutobi, as their Hokage. It was enough to make one pause).

But they were on very shaky grounds, and at the first sign of distress, others would act like sharks smelling blood in water – and do everything in their power to try and behead Konoha once and for all.

It was a very tense climate right now, and that would most definitely complicate her integration in Konoha. They would be even more suspicious of her now – but if she played her cards right, everything would be alright. Her story was too extravagant to be anything else than the truth, after all, and she knew they were suspicious, not stupid.

Still, it was going to be a long conversation, she was sure of that. And it would be truly successful only if they accepted her, conditions and all. She would settle for nothing else.

At the very least, it would be an interesting day, thought Harriet, stopping her invisibility and stepping out in the open.

Immediately, the shinobis' attention focused on her, and she could see their hands suddenly hovering over their weapons' handles (though she hadn't seen the movements they did in order to do so. They were _fast_ ).

Still, she did nothing else than walk slowly towards the gates, doing her best to look peaceful. She _was_ peaceful, of course, but with ninjas you never know.

There was three Jonins, the squad that had hopped above her just a few minutes ago, and two chunins, the gates' guards. She was sure that they were all part of the ANBUs anyway, but they had to be seen doing regular and official missions, after all. No one could officially know who was an ANBU and who wasn't. A ninja suddenly stopping doing missions would be a little bit too obvious.

Still, their faces were visible – though for one, it was as good as if he still had his mask, since the only part of his face visible was his _right eye_. Way to hide one's face. But if it worked for him...

Another one was smoking (and Harriet would have thought that as ninjas, they took the utmost care of their health, but apparently no. Strange, that – not only it weakened his lungs, but the smoke's odor must be hard to hide when in field missions, since it stuck to the skin).

The last one was lazily rolling a senbon in his mouth (and it supported her humble opinion that the best ninjas were all crazy – scratch that, her humble opinion that _all_ ninjas were crazy. In the good way, though – not Orochimaru-crazy. It that was the case, she would never have come here). But she had to admit, apart fro his apparent need to put pointy objects in his mouth, he was quite handsome.

The guards were strange as well, at least from Harriet's point of view. They were quite different from any other guard she had ever seen – even though they looked bored as Hell, as a lot of guards often did. Well, right now they looked weary and suspicious, but you know what she meant. One of them showed only one eye, the other one hidden by his dark brown hair ; while the other had a bandage around his face, covering the arch of his nose, and his black hair was in strange spikes.

Sadly, right now, none of them looked particularly happy to see her.

She stopped right before the guards' post, and tactfully pretended that the Jonins were not surrounding her in case she tried anything. With a start, she realized that she was still under her hood, and that they couldn't see her face. That certainly explained a tiny bit of their weariness – they probably thought she was hiding something.

Well, something even bigger than what she _was_ hiding (she wasn't intending to reveal everything to them. Her having to kill two 'immortal' ninjas, for one. You never know – what if her targets were from Konoha ? Doubtful, but possible).

Slowly, she raised her hands and put her hood down, smiling as gently and non-threateningly as she could. She could do gentle, yes, but she had a bit of difficulty about the 'non-threatening' part. Mistress of Death – it apparently affected her _aura_ , whatever that was. She had dozed on during Death's _lengthy_ and _dry_ explanation. Right now, she knew that what she was going to do and say during this day would decide of her immediate future. It was no joking matter, so she tried to smile as best as she could.

She could feel their surprise, and privately admitted that she didn't look like an intimidating kunoichi – more like a beautiful doll. She _was_ aware that she looked delicate, and fragile ; but they should know, better than anyone else, that appearances could be deceiving.

No matter. If they became too relaxed around her, then they would have to _learn_ the hard way, should they ever do anything to anger her.

"Good morning", she said, breaking the silence.

"What is your business with Konoha ?", asked one of the guards suspiciously.

Well, straight to the point, huh ? They sure didn't waste time. Not even a 'good morning' back.

"I have information for your Hokage, and would like to obtain a meeting with him", she explained softly, taking a pre-written piece of paper out of her pocket _very_ slowly (they were looking at her like _hawks_ ), and posing it on the guards' table.

There, she didn't look threatening at all.

She felt a wave of this neutral energy they called 'chakra' wash over her, and knew that they had tried to sense her. As in, tried to sense how much chakra she had. Well, she had to say, they would be disappointed. In fact, disoriented would be more exact.

And sure enough, they looked puzzled – and dare she say it ? Worried.

Well. That hadn't been expected.

"Is something the matter ?", she asked, frowning.

She hadn't made a mistake, had she ?

"Who are you ?", wearily asked one of the guards, kunais tightly held in both his hands, in a reversal grip.

In fact, every one of them had their weapons out, and she could feel their chakras ready to act. The leader – the one hiding his face, and to whom they all deferred – had even lifted his hitai-ate up.

Well. His hidden eye _was_ different from his black one, all red and whirling black comas, and she wasn't sure _why_ he was hiding it – but now wasn't really the moment, was it ? She couldn't have already messed up. She had literally just talked ! So sure, she had never been the best with words, but Hell, she couldn't be that bad, could she ? She was sure she had done nothing to warrant their extremely obvious suspicion of her.

"Right", she nodded, realizing she had forgotten the quite basic politeness. "Harriet Dorea Potter – I will save you from the rest".

There was a silence, full of disbelief, and one of the Jonins (the one who would one day choke on his senbon, Harriet was sure, and it would be a stupid, stupid way to go for a ninja, but whatever worked for him, huh ?) tried to pronounce it.

"Hari-hètte Dore-ha Potteru... ?"

Harriet winced softly at her name's butchering, and wisely proposed another way of calling her. She wasn't that attached to her name in any case – had, in fact, been called 'Harry' ever since her first year at Hogwarts, even if it was a man's nickname – and what she had in mind was still close to her original name.

"Well, how about you call me Hari Potta ? I think that's my name's translation in this world".

The leader – and silver hair was so strange, since he wasn't old at all – growled warningly, and she got the feeling they all thought she should be scared of the red moving eye – but really, she had no idea of what it was.

Maybe she should have asked her snakes about Konoha's best ninjas. She would have been prepared. Damn. She always managed to forget something.

"I just told you. My name doesn't exist there, I can't do anything about it" she snapped, annoyed.

She took a deep, calming breath – she had never been the best at this patience thing.

"Look, I really mean no harm. I just want you to give my paper to your Hokage, and ask if I can have a meeting with him. What is the matter ? I know it _may_ sound suspicious, but come on, I'm not trying anything – just staying put, waiting at the gates", she explained.

Her tone wasn't whiny.

No.

"You're dead !", finally blurted one of the guards – the one that hadn't talked to her before.

And really, _that_ was their problem ? Nothing she couldn't rectify – hold on. She shouldn't be dead.

Had she been attacked and she wasn't aware of it ? No, that was stupid. She would have, at the very least, woke up if they (whoever they were) had attacked at night, and she didn't think she was that oblivious to her own body. Plus, they would have had to go through her protective wards – and let's be real. That would never happen, since they didn't have magic.

Surely she would have remarked ?

She quickly glanced down at herself, frowning. There had been this one time (only once, okay ?!) where she had walked away from a fight with a _sword_ stuck through her heart. She hadn't realized at the time, and it was only when other people, walking in the streets, panicked that she had remarked this small detail.

But there had been a _fight_ right before ! She had been distracted, and she couldn't die anyway so it was no matter, but at least there had been an occasion for that to happen.

But not right now – and she was relieved to see that indeed, she wasn't prone to forgetfulness, and there was nothing that could make one suppose that she _should_ be dead.

"I'm not", she deadpanned. "At least, I don't feel like I am".

"You have no chakra", growled the silver haired Jonin.

And really, what was with him and growls ? He looked like a dog – or maybe a wolf, but that was near enough. Both were canine.

Actually, she realized, he also smelled like one – in undertones, as if he was often in contact with some. Often enough that it had become part of his scent. Oh, wait, there was some ninja Clan in Konoha that worked with dogs, her snakes had said. Maybe he was one of them ?

If he was, then maybe he wasn't that bad. Harriet quite liked dogs (obviously).

Still an annoying ass (but a fine one).

"No...", she confirmed, slowly, unsure of what was the problem.

Then she realized, and wanted to smack herself on the head. _Of course_ they would be shocked about that – _everyone_ had chakra in this world ! From the strongest leader to the smallest civilian newborn, they still had chakra – and at the very least, chakra coils.

One without chakra coils was dead.

Hence them thinking she was dead – or should be.

Damn, how utterly _stupid_ she could be sometimes !

Well, she had never been one to refrain herself for doing something, so she did smack herself on the forehead.

She ignored their somewhat amused and puzzled looks. It was such a stupid mistake ! So evident, why hadn't she realized... ?

"Yeah", she finally nodded tiredly. "That's actually part of what I want to talk with your Hokage, but you can say that it's a part of my kekkai genkai".

They still looked very unsure, and she could feel their chakra checking her, where her coils should have (approximately) been, and her heartbeat. It was beating, alright.

"What are you ?!", snapped the silver haired one – and he was doing nothing to be appreciated. Really.

"A human being, if that's what worrying you", she snapped back, narrowing her eyes. "I'm very much alive, thank you for caring".

And _maybe_ being snarky and sassy right now wasn't her best idea, but she was stressed – her _future_ depended on this very day ! – and worried, and sarcasm was her first defense.

"You don't look – don't _feel_ like you are", he barked, suspicion pouring out of him in waves.

"Appearances can be deceiving, you should now that", she growled, before adding with satisfaction. "Prat".

He launched himself at her – and oh, my. He was fast, very fast. As fast as Orochimaru, but then the creep hadn't have very much time to do anything other than take her hits. Yes, their... discussion hadn't gone that well.

But as fast as he was, he was still brutally blocked by her protective wall. It was a ward that she had invented long ago – created by her own magic, it acted like a literal bubble around the caster. She had used it often enough that she could put it up with a thought and within a second – and she had them raised since stepping in the open. She didn't need any concentration at all, because she had written the ward in Runes, translating its effects, and had tattooed said Runes on her right arm.

Well, she hadn't done it herself – she had gone to a tattoo artist, thank you very much – but she _had_ infused her magic in the black ink without the artist's knowledge, so one could say that she had a part in the realization of her tattoo. Still, it meant that her magic only needed to activate the Runes, and the ward immediately appeared. Less than half of the half of a second, all in all.

It was a habitude, really, and though it had never saved her life (since she couldn't lose it), it certainly did have saved her a lot of pain. It's not as if she couldn't feel pain because she couldn't die, absolutely not – though sometimes, the pain was very much dulled by adrenaline.

That's way she hadn't remarked the sword sticking out of her chest, by the way (That, and four whole days without sleep _before_ the fight. She had really needed to sleep).

Anyway, the bubble stopped everything – weapons, bullet, magic, physical attacks, even _air_ were filtered, and nothing nefarious could enter. She had been quite paranoid when creating it – not that it wasn't justified. Things and people could still pass through, of course, but only if they had good intention. Magic was based on intentions, after all, so it could feel others'.

She would have been in a really stupid position if she had had to deactivate her protective bubble to open a door, to renew the oxygen she was breathing, or simply to sit down or take objects in her hands. It would have been terribly impractical, honestly, and everything that could and _would_ hurt her was blocked by the barrier.

Well, apparently the silver-haired guy didn't have very good intentions, for he was stopped neatly before the bubble's place – but he didn't have very bad ones either, since he wasn't magically rejected to the forest's edge. He could have been.

Guess he was just doing his job – attacking suspicious persons who came too near Konoha.

"What's that ?!", he growled furiously, eyes wide and darting around her, searching for what had stopped him.

His weapons were tightly held in his hands.

"My kekkai genkai", offered offhandedly Harriet. "Look, I just want you to give a single little paper to your Hokage – you can ever read it beforehand, no problem – and I will just wait right there until he decides whether he would want to talk with me or not. If not, then I will just go my way – but it would be a loss for Konoha, no arrogance there".

Even if she was sure the paper would have been read anyway, offer or not, before arriving to the Hokage ; it never hurt to remember them that she had truly no means to attack their Hokage right now.

Well, she had, but they definitely didn't need to know that.

Nope.

She could see, right before her, the talking guard (he talked more than his comrade, as far as she could tell anyway) hesitantly reach for the paper, innocently posed on his table. She silently encouraged him, all the while steadily ignoring his teammates' tensing forms.

They were going nowhere. Maybe the paper would convince him – them – enough to act. She had written it with this purpose in mind : interesting enough to warrant a meeting with the Hokage, or catch his curiosity at the very least.

She mourningly asked herself why she hadn't just apparated to his office – before remembering that not only she had never been there previously, but it would also have been a very, very bad first meeting. Oh, well.

Sure enough, the guard's eyes widened, and he quickly looked up at her, before giving the paper to the shinobi next to him. Soon enough, it had been passed through the whole circle around her, and their reactions had been much the same – surprise for the chunins, neutrality for the Jonins.

They had great poker faces – Harriet would hate to play cards with them. Their presence must be forbidden in Casinos, as well (except as guards, maybe).

Harriet knew very well what was on the paper.

' _Orochimaru is dead. I have some information I think you would like to know, as well as a proposition_ '.

It wasn't the Nirvana, but it was enough, since the talking guard took to running towards Konoha (and presumably his Hokage's office), after a nod from the silver-haired leader.

Her snakes had been right. Orochimaru _was_ a pressing matter to Konoha ninjas, as well as for the Hokage. And, for once, Harriet knew the history behind that one – what with the Hokage being Orochimaru's old sensei.

Harriet could feel the ANBUs stationed around them all, looking at and studying her. She had no doubt Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sandaime Hokage of Konoha, already knew of her presence.

When the guard was back with his leader's authorization for her coming in, she just smiled smugly at the silver man, whom she had lovingly dubbed 'The Bastard'.

He only growled back, both of them ignoring the small amusement coming out of the other shinobis (there was truly nothing fun in this, from Harriet's humble opinion), and quickly travelled through Kokoha, towards a big, tall tower standing proudly at the center of the Village.

Harriet was certain that The Bastard had took the rooftops only to see her fail, thinking that since she didn't have chakra, she wouldn't be able to follow. That would force her to show a weakness, and to ask for the civilian route. It was a psychological game – ninjas were quite good at those.

They were quite good at everything pertaining to their work, really.

But Harriet had roughly a hundred years of advance on him, and she was perfectly able to follow them. She had spent months working on copying this particular use of chakra with magic, after all. She did so with a knowing smirk.

And, though she could feel the annoyance coming from him, as well as the amusement coming from the others, she didn't fail to note that they were carefully surrounding her – one taking point in front, and the two others running behind her to prevent any attack. And that was without counting the ANBUs stealthily following them.

Harriet could _feel_ the trust.

They were standing in front of a door, and if the ANBU secretary working at the desk right next to it was any indication, then it was the Hokage's office's door. (Harriet thought she was an ANBU, because she reeked of death. A civilian would never smell like that, and a Jonin wouldn't have had to disguise herself as a civilian. Hence, an ANBU).

Well, that, and the fact that it was the most secured floor of the whole building, and where her guards had walked her.

So many clues.

Still, the door was opened with the Hokage's authorization, and they all entered. All the eyes fastened on her were making her nervous, but she pushed the feeling down and only looked perfectly at ease. She had a lot of training in this – she supposed that having to suffer through those insufferable Balls at the Ministry, all those years ago, had had at least _one_ positive aspect.

She could now be bored as Hell, and still look perfectly pleasant and at ease.

Her bubble was still up, but now they were standing inside it, since they had no nefarious intentions against her. Should they suddenly feel one for whatever reason, they would be ejected out of it before even _realizing_ they were feeling like hurting her.

All in all, Harriet felt quite in security. She had nothing to fear – and she could, technically, destroy this Village without even sweating a bit. Even if she had never liked to kill innocents – she would just apparate away, if push came to shove. She was fine.

The office was quite spacious, with the past Hokage's pictures hanging from the back wall (and how sad was that, putting them behind the actual Hokage, knowing that all the others had died in duty ? That was a bit macabre. Then, she remembered the Headmaster's office, at Hogwarts, and admitted to herself that a lack of common sense was maybe not limited to her world's people only. At least those paintings weren't animated, and the past Hokages weren't looking and talking and maybe criticizing whatever the living one was doing). There was also quite a bit of scrolls (ninjas seemed fond of them) and a few books.

And paperwork. Lots of it.

The man standing behind an imposing mahogany desk didn't look like much, but there was an aura and a power around him that belied this first assumption. He was a leader – a warrior, a survivor, and a strong man.

Before Harriet could make more than two steps in his direction, she was stopped by an arm right in front of her. It was the Bastard, and the other two Jonins of his team stood ready behind her.

"Your cloak", asked the silver haired man.

Well, she should have known. They weren't going to let her come near their Hokage with a cloak on, given that she could be hiding quite a lot of weapons under it. She shrugged it down, and put it on the extended arm before her.

"Thank you, my good man", she muttered with a quick smirk, totally ignoring the way he was shooting daggers at her with his single, smoky grey eye (which was quite the feat, since he had only _one_ eye open. Why he kept the other closed, she didn't know – maybe a particularity of his ? Ninjas were known to be crazy : the stronger they were, the crazier they become).

(Not that she had, herself, anything to say about it. Hello, immortal 120 years old witch wanting to die one day, and coming from literally another world there ! That, and she could admit that she _had_ some... particularities. One eye kept closed ? So what ?).

He could keep the cloak, for all she cared. It was one she had... borrowed, from somewhere in the road (bandits did have some good stuff), in order to fit in better. She didn't care about what happened to it. Bastard could hold it for now. Everything important to her was in a single trunk, hanging around her neck from a silver runic necklace, except that one Gold Trunk that she had tucked in her pocket, and intended to use in order to demonstrate that not only what she was saying about her kekkai genkai was true, but also that she was filthy rich.

She skillfully ignored the surprise that came from the shinobis, as well as the annoyance coming from the silver one. She was wearing a precious looking kimono, made of a dark green satin (?) with a beautiful arabesque (?) pattern, in golden thread. Her feet were encased in soft, deep green satin sandals, and all in all she looked nothing like a warrior, but more like a noble.

An Hime, as they called the Ladies there.

That was her point, actually. She had wanted to present herself as an one – they could (but doubtfully would) refuse a kekkai genkai user, but not a very, very healthy woman.

Money meant a lot, even in this world.

(Though, she would have loved to have her trusty and comfortable basilisk hide boots, instead of this soft little things, but they clashed with her kimono. Truly, the sacrifices she had to do).

Then, she looked right into the leader's eyes.

As said before, she was ready to submit – somewhat – herself to him. But only if he was worthy enough, and she certainly wasn't going to take any chance about it. She had first been worried ninjas would feel her magic, but as her one-sided fight with Orochimaru had taught her, they simply didn't.

Harriet supposed it was because magic didn't, in fact, exist in this world. Bar from her, it had no place there. Ninjas couldn't feel it, because they had never felt anything like it before ; and it was so different, yet so similar to chakra, that their own bodies didn't react when it entered them.

Though, to be fair, Harriet very much doubted that wizards would have felt anything if ninjas had used techniques onto them back in her world. While her magic was a special case (being Mistress of Death stopped anything, from manipulations to invasions), they would have probably fell for it.

In any case, she looked straight into his eyes, judging him. She was too concentrated to see him stop his ninjas with a gesture, when they were ready to shove her away for doing what they thought was an insulting action (glaring, and defying the Hokage ! Not on their watch !), but she did feel the amusement and grudging respect the man felt for her right now.

It wasn't because she was looking at him in the eyes – she wouldn't be the first, though he preferred that to someone avoiding his eyes – but it was because he _felt_ what she was made of. He knew, instinctively, that she was a warrior, a survivor, and someone who never broke, despite everything she went through. And he knew she went through a lot – it was all written in her cold, hardened, ancient green eyes.

She was weary, wary, and determined.

He knew he was being tested. For what, he didn't know, but he had a feeling it was important. That this woman's judgment did matter, and that he should pass it. Unsure as to why, he calmly looked back, trying not to flinch at the rare intensity of the green, green eyes that seemed to see right to his soul, and waited for her to make her decision.

Meanwhile, Harriet was making liberal use of legilimency.

It was very handy that they couldn't feel nor detect it. Their chakra didn't even fight against it, since it didn't recognize it as an intruder, or an enemy. All the better for her, she knew, though she didn't abuse of her advantage.

She wasn't looking for the guy's life, but for indications of his personality.

And she had to admit that she was impressed.

The man wasn't perfect, far from it, but he tried to be as good as he could. He had made a lot of errors, but what saved him were his regrets, and his will to do better. Orochimaru hadn't had any regrets, and didn't want to stop what he was doing. Sarutobi, though he was the man's old sensei, couldn't be more different.

That was, she admitted to herself, a man she could follow. A man she could trust. As a Ninja's Leader, he had done a lot of bad, shady things, but he truly wanted the best for Konoha, and for each and every one of its citizens, ninjas and civilians alike.

He also wanted the best for others, as long as it wasn't detrimental to Konoha. He longed for peace, all the while knowing that it was a unreachable ideal. He wanted the best for the world, but did what he had to do for Konoha – for those who were under his responsibility.

He was not a great man, but he was a good one, and that was good enough for Harriet. Even good men were rare, nowadays.

She nodded softly, leaving his mind, to let him know he had passed her judgment.

Meanwhile, Sarutobi was feeling both respect and dread. The woman was something else, that much he was sure of, but she should also be dead. No one, _no one_ could be alive with no chakra, and no coils.

No one. Not even animals.

But she was, and from his ANBUs' reports, he knew that she also had a kekkai genkai – but _how_?! She didn't have chakra ! Not one ounce of it in her whole body !

He carefully masked his thoughts, fingers curling around the piece of paper in his hand. The one that his guard had given him from her. The one stating that his old student, Orochimaru, was dead.

Oh, how much had he failed ?

He closed his eyes for half a second, getting ready, before he began what he had a feeling would be a very long, very complicated conversation.

"You wanted to talk to me ?"

There, general and neutral.

She nodded graciously – and she certainly wasn't what he had expected. She looked like an Hime, moved like one. You can't fake these things, not to this point. She had noble blood in her veins.

But she also had fight and survival coursing through it, walking like a predator, silently and graciously. Her whole body moved in sync, and she had the tranquil assurance of someone who knew precisely where everybody was in the room, and who knew she wasn't at risk.

"Indeed, though I think that it may be better to use a bit of privacy", she talked softly, before rolling her eyes at his ninjas' tension and adding. "Not just you and me, but a seal maybe ? Not everything I'm going to tell should be known by anyone".

The Sandaime hesitated, unsure. She wasn't looking threatening, and he very much doubted she would be able to do anything to him, given his own power and his ANBUs' presence ; but he knew better than to underestimate anyone.

Even someone who should by all rights be dead, but was standing here confidently, with a perfectly beating heart, and a smell that could only be described as _Life_ coming from her.

He nodded finally.

"Kakashi stays, the others may go", he dismissed the two Jonins, keeping silence on the ANBUs' presence in the room.

His shinobis immediately followed his orders, bowing respectfully before closing the door behind them. Sarutobi then activated his Privacy Seal, noting the interested and curious look that Hari-san had upon seeing them.

A Seal Master ? There was no incomprehension in her gaze, only curiosity. She knew this Seal, or at least knew Seals well enough to understand what this one was made of, and how it was written, so maybe – but no. No chakra meant no Seals, since one had to use chakra in order to _do_ Seals.

And you simply cannot know Seals if you're not able to _do_ them.

"Thank you, Hokage-dono", she nodded in appreciation, seemingly unaware of the tiny dose of killing intent directed her way by Kakashi, upon hearing the suffix she had used for him.

It was interesting, though. She was clearly not recognizing as her superior, even if she knew of his position. Better yet, she used 'dono', and not 'san'. Did it mean that she recognized him as a clearly important person, but considered herself as just as much important as he was ?

There was too much unknown, and Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't feel comfortable. He wanted answers, and he wanted them three minutes ago ! But, since he didn't know a single thing about her, he decided to wait. He was bound to discover things while talking with her, after all.

"Just to be sure, though", she frowned pensively. "The only persons in this room are your four ANBUs, your Jonin, you, and myself, is that right ?"

Sarutobi took note of her capacity to know when ANBUs were here – maybe a type of Sensor that didn't need chakra ? Or maybe she was just smart enough to realize that as a Hokage, there was always ANBUs in the same room as him wherever he went.

Then again, she said four, when the usual number was two. He had been in a mission report with them when he had been made aware of this woman's presence and request by one of the ANBUs patrolling around Konoha ; and he had sent them to see if this woman was a threat or not. They had followed her and her escort right to his office without spotting any threatening intention from her, and had decided to stay and see.

There was never such a thing as too much protection around their Hokage. Especially when the possible menace was an unknown woman, that should be _dead_ by all accounts !

So she must have felt them.

"That seems about right", he admitted calmly, ignoring his shinobis' agitation.

 _My, they could be so skittish_ , he thought with detached amusement and fondness – before shaking himself mentally. Now was most certainly _not_ the moment.

"Then I take it you don't know about the guy that's posing as your indoor plant ?", she asked innocently, looking pointedly at an neutral-looking plant in the corner of the room.

As they were still processing the information, meaning half a second after her question, the plant suddenly shifted back into a human shape, and the unknown ninja tried to escape through the locked window.

He would have succeeded, too – they were that shocked – if not for him to be suddenly hit by a red light, and suddenly go rigid while running. He crashed into the floor, body seemingly frozen, and a heartbeat later he was surrounded by ANBUs, kunais held menacingly at his throat.

He still didn't move, but there was a stunned silence in the room.

A spy in his office ! _In his office !_

How could he not know ? How could that have _happened_ ?! Was the security that lax, that someone could enter his office, and just henge himself into a plant, with no one seeing anything ?

Where his ninjas this incompetent ? Or, more worrying, was there a mole in his ANBUs ?

That was the only solution.

What had the mole reported to their master ? From which Village were they ? What secrets had been spilled ? _How could that have happened_?

They were a ninja Village, for crying out loud ! Was he becoming that old that he couldn't even sense a spy's presence in his own office ? The room in which he spent the most of his time ?

"Sparrow, Boar !", he seethed, calling the two ANBUs responsible for his security. "How could that have happened ?!"

The two men flickered in front of him, bowing deeply.

"We have no excuse, Hokage-sama. We don't know", admitted Boar, and he could feel the anger in his voice.

Both were very angry at themselves. Probably saw it as a failure – and it was one.

But they weren't lying – their chakra and heartbeat didn't shiver, though they were both agitated ; and while it was possible to have enough control to hide that you were lying, it never worked on him.

He _knew_ when people lied. They hadn't.

Good to know not all the ANBUs were traitors, he thought grimly.

His office was supposed to be the most secure place of all Konoha. It was truly a major breach of security – and who know the damages this breach had already caused, or would cause ?

"...Ne", muttered gravely Kakashi, holding the mole's tongue between two fingers, exposing the seal inked on it.

 _Danzo_.

Sarutobi felt the fury course through him, but quickly pushed it down. Now was not the moment. Not now, he would have to wait.

When the time was done, though...

 _Danzo_. He couldn't believe it – but the saddest part was that he could. He could believe it – he believed it. But to face the fact that Danzo was a traitor, to his Hokage if not to Konoha...

"Why isn't he moving ?", he asked tersely, head jerking toward the still man on the floor.

"He still has a heartbeat, Hokage-sama. I'm not sure of why he's like that, the red light wasn't -", began Kakashi, Sharingan eye spinning wildly through the room, before he was interrupted.

"He's stunned", nonchalantly explained the woman, sitting primly in a seat in front of his desk.

He wasn't quite sure of when she had moved, though. She was discreet, too discreet – he didn't like the situation. At all. Sure, they were all a bit shocked – who wouldn't be ?! But still, she had managed to walk to his desk, and sit down quietly, without being spotted.

She was too stealthy – but she couldn't be a ninja. She _couldn't_ ! She didn't have chakra – she was an anomaly !

Why was she here ? Why did she want to meet him ? Why now ? Was it a trap ? How did the woman know the spy was there ? Was he hers ?

Why was she there ? She still hadn't said anything useful, for all she had claimed knowing something about Orochimaru.

But no – the spy could have been there for a long time, it just so happened that she came into his office today, and that she was a better sensor than all of his ninjas and himself. Hard to believe, but then again, _she_ was hard to believe as well – clearly living against all odds.

His guard did say she had said something about a kekkai genkai – was that it ? He knew of few things that could stop an attack of Kakashi, but she had done it, as had been reported by one ANBU.

There was something fishy there – but not necessarily bad. He was suspicious, not paranoid.

Paranoia could destroy a ninja.

(Though, it was better to be paranoid than to become complacent).

As for Orochimaru, he would never have given a meeting as soon as he had, usually – if not for the very good reason that it had been rumored that the Snake Contract only had one user now, Anko Mitarashi.

She had confirmed it herself a few days ago, looking as bewildered as they were – though much more emotionally shocked.

So Orochimaru _could_ indeed be dead, or could have lost the Contract for whatever reason – nothing was sure, and every information was welcome. He knew Jiraiya was working on it right now, but there were no leads so far. One thing was sure, and that was that something had happened to his old student, something that hadn't been to his advantage.

He was snapped out of his thoughts by the woman's voice – Hari-san, his guard had said.

Apparently, she had felt the disbelief coming out of the shinobis centered around the spy, as tiny as it was – ANBUs were good at hiding their emotions, and Kakashi was ANBU, for all that he was wearing his Jonin uniform.

He did take notice of the fact that one of the ANBUs around the mole was a clone, and that the original was hidden in the shadows right behind him, ready to strike should Hari-san try anything.

"I mean, literally stunned", she explained. "It's one of my... kekkai genkai effects".

"So... ?", drawled Kakashi, clearly asking for more information.

"Right", she shot him an annoyed look. "Well, basically, he can't move anymore, and he doesn't see nor hear anything around him. He will stay this way until whether he dies, or I stop the spell".

"Interesting...", muttered Sarutobi, ignoring the 'spell' comment for now.

He made a quick decision.

"Alright, I don't want to report this meeting to a later date. Boar, secure the man, then as soon as we're done here, you will bring him to the T&I, clear ? Sparrow, you will search for Inoichi".

There was a concert of 'Hai's, and Boar tied the spy before putting him in one side of the room, and quickly creating an sound-blocking barrier around him, having seen his Hokage's hand signs.

Just because the woman said that the mole couldn't hear anything, didn't mean that it was the truth. Sarutobi wasn't taking any chance – not on that. Maybe, maybe Inoichi would be able to get enough information in the spy's brain before it was destroyed ; and if there was enough to condemn Danzo...

But he already knew the chances were slim. Still, better than nothing. He would make an error, someday.

"You should be dead", he directly attacked.

He was in no mood for idle talk. The most obvious, glaring problem in the room right now had to be addressed. He knew of techniques that could raise the dead, knew of techniques that could grant immortality – none were peaceful and likeable.

The woman better have one hell of an explanation.

He saw Kakashi slowly walk across the room, and lean on the wall, right next to the green-eyed, black-haired woman, facing her left side.

Even the ANBUs were watching her with intensity. She really, really shouldn't be alive.

"Right, yeah, I know", she grinned sheepishly. "It was a mistake of my part – I had forgotten everyone had chakra here"

"What do you mean ?!", snapped Sarutobi, patience at its thinnest.

She eyed him, before shrugging helplessly.

"There's nothing I can do about it, you know ? Chakra does not exist in my world", she explained quickly – as if _that_ explained anything.

Yeah. No.

"Your world ?", he narrowed his eyes at her.

"Well, that's a long, long story – but I think it's better if I tell you everything in one go, right ?". She didn't wait for an answer.

"My name is Harriet Dorea Potter, my mother was Lily Potter née Evans, and my father was James Potter. I was born the 31 July 1980, at St Mangoust, England", she introduced herself – and was it normal that he hadn't understood the majority of her words ?

Was it a code ?

"What is In-glande ? When is 1980 ?", he asked, ignoring the strange names. Some people gave weird names to their kids – maybe an old tradition of her family, she did look like she was from nobility.

Hari-san sent him a reproaching look, and he crushed the strange and stupid impulse of apologizing. There was something with her eyes... He had never seen something like that.

They exuded power, determination, conviction, and a strength of character and will that was rarely seen. Even among ninjas.

"England is my birth country, and 1980 is obviously the year of my birth".

"This _world_ isn't even in his hundred year, records wise, and I know of no country that is called 'In-glande' – and I know every country of this world", he snapped, angered by what could only be lies.

But her heartbeat wasn't lying, no matter how much he searched – was it a special technique ? Did it come from her so-called kekkai genkai ?

It would be really annoying to be unable to determine whether she was lying or not. There would be no trust at all. He could feel the frustration coming from his shinobis, but he didn't blame them.

The woman came her with information and immediately begins with lies ? What a waste of time, and extremely suspicious with that. How did she know about the mole's presence ?

No, he wanted _answers_. And he wanted them _now_.

"Whoever said I was talking of this world ?", asked Harriet, smirking.

There was a bit of a silence, before the Sandaime shot a lot of sharp, cutting killing intent straight at the young woman.

"So you think it is funny ?", he asked very softly and calmly – but a deaf would have heard the threat.

"This is the third time you interrupted me, Hokage-dono. I will not be able to explain properly if you continue to do so – and did you really think you were the only world in existence ?", she huffed with annoyance, small fingers tapping lightly an unknown rhythm onto the arm of her seat in irritation, ignoring the shinobi's crushing disbelief that washed over her. Their thoughts were deafening, and she tried to tone down her passive legilimency as best as she could.

She thought that she had felt something a bit before, something that remembered her vaguely of Death, but she wasn't sure. Oh, well. It was so weak, almost imperceptible, it was probably not important.

Killing Intent had, of course, _nothing_ on Death's actual presence, and Harriet – Hari, now – had herself been hit by the Killing Curse, which was an incredibly concentrated dose of Killing Intent – nothing ninjas would ever been able to do. That would kill them before it even left their bodies.

Nonetheless, the result was that the shinobis were shaken to see this soft-looking, small woman shrug their Hokage's Killing Intent as if it was nothing – _they_ had shivered upon feeling it, and it wasn't even directed at them !

This woman was – illogical ! Utterly illogical !

"I can do an Unbreakable Vow, if you want", she pronounced slowly, looking right in the Hokage's eyes to convey the seriousness of the offer.

"What is it ?", he asked, jaw set.

He was losing his time.

He should have her dead right now.

Why wasn't he giving the order ? Why did he feel as if he should wait ? Why did he feel as if what was going on was really, really important – crucial even ? Why did his shinobis have the same feeling ?

He knew they had, he could feel it.

If it was only him, he could have thought he was imagining things.

But all of them ? There was no way.

"It is a magical Vow. What I swear to do, or not to do, in this Vow ; will be magically binding. Meaning, if I break my Vow, I will lose my life", she stated quietly, sitting still in her seat.

"Magical ?", asked Kakashi while raising a brow.

His skepticism was heavy in his tone.

"Where I'm from, there is no chakra, as I already said. But there is magic", confirmed Harriet.

"Magic ?", asked Kakashi again. "Are you sure it's not the word you give to chakra ?".

He had decided to skip the 'in my world' part. Maybe the woman was crazy – you never knew.

" _Yes_ , I think I'm pretty sure it isn't", she snapped at him, glaring. "Magic can do things that chakra cannot, okay ?"

"Right", he drawled lazily. "And chakra can do things that... magic, cannot, right ?"

"No", she shook her head. "Magic can do everything – the only limit it has is your own imagination. It can imitate what chakra do, though it is not really worth the trouble, generally. Chakra is very limited".

It was Sarutobi's turn to raise an eyebrow. Well, that was quite the degrading statement – she had literally just said that she was better than them all… whether she had done it on purpose or not.

"Really ? Seems like it's quite a strong energy", he mocked blandly, not believing her at all.

"Yes, and it's also why I don't have chakra or coils – I don't need them, since they don't exist in my world, and we're seven billiards", she countered, waving her hand with exaggerate gestures, and conjuring a cup of Iced Tea.

It was hot, she was thirsty, and it was magic.

Chakra couldn't do that. Not that she knew of.

And indeed, their expressions were priceless.

She saw the two visible ninjas cross their fingers, and expel chakra with a muttered 'Kai', and remembered it was what was used to break a genjutsu. Did they really think she had put one up ?

She had no chakra, for God's – wait, it was Kami now – for Kami's sake ! Sure, she could do Illusions (it was a truly fascinating branch of magic, and the prime example that magic was intention, since the very foundation of this branch of magic was to show to someone else something that _wasn't_ here, something you had to have _invented_ , imagined perfectly, something that wasn't a speel pre-written in an old book by other persons insisting that it was the only way to use that magic), but genjutsu ?

She was pants at them. You had to target your enemy's coils, and she had no idea of what they were, where they were, how to do it. She _couldn't_ do genjutsu – but it had nothing on Illusions, so no cries there.

She couldn't even detect them – then again, she didn't need to – her magic rejected any other energy trying to control her. So she was safe on that point. You know, perks of being Mistress of Death, same old.

"Magic", she smirked.

She let that sink for a bit, but ninjas were good at processing information very quickly (it saved lives), and went back on the discussion.

"I... see", slowly said the Hokage, looking between her cup and her face in something not quite unlike disbelief.

"So, do you want this Vow or not ?", she asked, feeling tired.

They were all being too un-trustful, and though she knew it was a given for both parties (her for her life up until now, them for much the same reason), they were going nowhere like that.

If they could just listen !

(Still, if she was being honest with herself – right now she wasn't – _she_ would have been as suspicious as they were, should the places be reversed).

"How do we know you don't lie ?", questioned Sarutobi. "About the Vow ?"

Harriet shuddered, not bothering to hide it.

"Look, you _don't_ joke about the Vow. It doesn't as much take your life as it takes your _magic_. For a wizard, losing his magic is like... I don't know. It's a nightmare, and it would be way better to lose your life. Well, given that we cannot live without our magic, the result isn't that different in both cases, but you just don't joke with losing one's magic. That's not done – that's unnatural. There had been very, very _few_ Unbreakable Vows done, and in no case the person doing the Vow ever died, except for the one who had tried to see if it truly was Unbreakable. He had been the first – and the last", she explained tightly. "As a rule, we don't _do_ Unbreakable Vows. It exists, but it is something of a taboo. It is too binding, too absolute".

Her whole body language screamed tension, and they knew it was no joking matter. Not when there was this look in her eyes, not when she described it as the worst thing that could ever happen to a person – and not when everything in her appearance showed that she had seen a war. It was in her eyes. She had not lied about the war, at the very least, and that meant something.

A warrior would not joke on something as important as death.

"As for knowing if it is all a lie or not – you can't know. You can't be sure. But really, why would I lie ? I'm not even from this world, my magic just proved that, and what would I have against you ? I don't even _know_ you", she tried.

Sarutobi looked at the cup in her hand for quite a long time, before nodding.

"Alright. You won't be able to lie ? Whatever the question ?", he asked to be sure.

Harriet looked right back, sharply.

Oh, he was good. He wasn't the Hokage because he was the stronger – he was also pretty smart. Cunning, too.

"I won't be able to lie, indeed", she confirmed, before smiling coldly. "But if I don't want to answer a question, then I won't. I won't be lying, hence I won't lose my magic"

"Fair enough", sighed the Hokage, looking tired.

He pressed his temples, and wished for a bit of Sake. He wasn't crazy enough for the job.

A woman from another world ? Seriously ?

Why did this shit always happen to him ?

Harriet took the Elder Wand out of her pocket. She didn't need a wand to do magic, but she needed one to make the Vow. The wand served as the witness to the Vow, as strange as that sounded.

Harriet didn't know much about the specificities, but knew enough to use one.

"I solemnly swear, on my Magic and on my Life, that only truth will escape my lips for as long as this meeting will be. No lies will be told by me, so Mote it Be", she intoned calmly.

There was the tell-tale golden light of an Unbreakable Vow flashing through the room, and though they tensed, none of the shinobis attacked her.

The light subsided, and when she rolled her right sleeve up, they could see the golden crisscrossing pattern on her arm, up to her elbow. There were runes as well, since she was a Rune Mistress, but they didn't know what they were.

Probably thought they were tattoos, since Fuinjutsu didn't look like Runes at all – physically, at least. Usually, her runes sets weren't visible, but since she was using such an important magic in her dominant arm, they had gleamed along the binding of the Unbreakable Vow.

No matter.

Then, Harriet looked tensely at Sarutobi, seeming to collect and prepare herself. After a bit of silence, she nodded, and took a deep breath.

"I am a ma – ugh !", she hissed through her clenched teeth, before interrupting herself, one hand clutching her breast, over her heart.

The gold-like tattoo on her arm had flared up, shining with a strangely efficient threat in the room. Gold wasn't a color often associated with ominous things – usually more with miracles, in fact – but right now it sure seemed menacing enough. Her heart had stuttered, before accelerating quickly under the pain. That wasn't something that could be faked.

"A woman !", she hastily rectified, relaxing marginally when the Vow's marking subsided to a small glow, easily unnoticeable to an untrained eye.

A quick look on her right indicated her that the shadow falling over her was the Bastard hovering around her, ready to help if needed be – and she had to admit that she was a bit touched.

They didn't really like each other – he may be handsome, body wise (she didn't know about his face), but he was also aloof and condescending, two things that rubbed her the wrong way – yet he still was ready to help her. It was in his thoughts.

That was more than she could say of her own people. _They_ would have waited to push her down.

In between deep breaths and grimaces of pain, she nodded in thanks to him, letting him know that though she appreciated the offer, she wasn't in need of his help. He returned to his previous post, and she took her time to calm down properly.

While technically that was a way for her to die, even as Mistress of Death, she knew she would never had done it. Better live for thousands years than to lose her magic. Especially considering that the Hallows' magic would have fought the effects of the broken Vow, and would have lengthened her agony for an unknown amount of time.

She hadn't lied when she had said that losing one's magic was a taboo, in the magical world. That wasn't for nothing that squibs were abandoned by their families, if they were not outright killed.

Just because they didn't have magic.

In her opinion, it was more the parents' fault, than the child's.

But in any case, a wizard's magic was an essence, literally intertwined to his soul. One cannot live without a soul ; and a wizard couldn't live without his magic.

Losing it was – no.

Best not to head that way.

She tried to smile, but it came out more as a grimace.

"See ? I can't lie"

The Hokage only nodded.

"Right. Then what ?"

"Then I talk and you listen. I'm sure you will find it interesting, if not entertaining", replied Harriet, sitting back in her seat and trying to relax, with little success.

Her magic was agitated. So was she, for that matter, and her heartbeat still had yet to calm down.

"What will be ?", asked Kakashi curiously.

"Why, my life story, of course", chuckled Harriet, before taking back the cup of Iced Tea that had been floating in the air in front of her while she had been proving that the Vow worked, and drank the rest of the cup, before dismissing it with a gesture.

After clearing her throat, she began.

"As I was saying before, I was born in 1980, in a country called England. Now, what you need to know about my world, is that there's basically two worlds in one : one is the Magical world, so called because only magic-related people know about it and live in it ; and the Muggle world, so called because it is composed of non-magical people".

She supposed that it was easy enough to understand, so she continued.

"The magical world is hidden from the muggle one – they don't know that we exist".

"Why ?", interrupted the Hokage, feeling again the need to apologize upon receiving her reproaching glance for his interruption.

"Well, long ago, there had been a time when we all knew each other, but then the Witches Hunts happened, and the magical world went into hiding. We're but legends for them, now", revealed Harriet.

The Hokage opened his mouth to ask something, before he closed it and reluctantly raised his hand, as if he was in class and in the middle of a lesson.

An history one, with a strange sensei. He nevertheless received a nod from said sensei, and asked his question. Strangely, none of the shinobis in the room ever so much as _thought_ to snicker – it looked quite right to do this.

"What are the Witches Hunts ?"

"Yes, I was coming to it", nodded Harriet, feeling more at ease now that her magic was over her risky test. "People – muggles, I mean, suddenly decided that wizards or witches, meaning people with powers, had obtained them by dark actions. That their powers came from the Devil himself, and that they should therefore be killed. We're not exactly sure of what had caused this, but soon enough, every person suspected of Magic was condemned to be burnt alive".

"I don't understand", frowned Kakashi. "You all lived in one world, and then they suddenly decide that you should all die ?"

"Jealousy, hatred, envy", shrugged Harriet. "Magical people could do what they could only dream of, and it was easier to hate them than to accept that wizards were, somehow, better than them. Because while muggles happily burned us, wizards weren't exempt of fault either. They probably thought they were Chosen, better than what they called, and still call, 'lowly muggles'. Whatever the reason why, they hunted us, and we went into hiding. To be honest, the majority of the burned 'witches' were actually muggles, all women since they apparently thought only women could do magic. But some witches had been caught, all children that hadn't been able to run away, and hadn't been saved in time. Hence the decision to separate our worlds"

She said that as if it was obvious, and it really was. Jealousy and envy could make you do horrible things, they could twist you and darken your soul. Petunia had been a perfect example of this – jealous of Lily, her little sister that had had magic when she had not, that had been a great student, a beautiful girl, and everything she wasn't.

Harriet wasn't searching excuses for her aunt – she hated her, her and her little, normal family – but she knew that if Petunia hadn't been jealous of Lily, then she would never have acted that way towards her niece.

"... Still don't understand", muttered Kakashi, and Harriet rolled her eyes.

"Well, let's put it that way. In this world, ninjas use chakra and civilians don't – but both have the _possibility_ of learning to use it. Now, imagine that only ninjas can use it, and that civilians don't have any. You can basically do anything, and they would be utterly defenseless against you. Do you really think they would accept you ? Especially taking into account that there's one ninja for a hundred civilians – probably more ?", asked Harriet.

She saw comprehension dawning in his eye. He had closed his other one, but not putting his headband back on it. She would have to ask the story behind that, someday. She still wasn't sure why he was closing it, and only used it sometimes. Though maybe the long scar bisecting said eye was the reason. Maybe it hurt, and he wanted to limit his use of it ?

While the red eye was different from the smoky black one, and was a bit strange, it appeared useful.

And the shinobis in the room knew she was right. As it was, civilians didn't really like ninjas. They engaged them, and were thankful for their help, but they didn't like them.

Ninjas were too different, in mind and in work. They didn't take holidays, or even weekends. They trained, killed, went on missions, were injured, repeat. They also died, much younger than civilians.

Ninjas didn't care for wedding – a very simple ceremony was enough, and they didn't need wedding bands. They generally put the ring in a necklace around their throat, if they took the time to have one at all : they didn't need proof of being together, any other ninja worth his chakra would know they were in a relationship, ring or not. Ninjas were always a bit tense, ready for anything, even in their own Village. They overthought situations, were suspicious as Hell, and overall civilians and ninjas rarely mixed.

Then, there was the fact that a ninja could basically destroy a civilian village in one night, and kill everyone inside without getting caught. The fact that a ninja could be engaged to take your life, and you couldn't do anything about it except hope that your enemies don't have enough money to command your death (assassination missions were quite costly) was also a bitter pill to swallow, for the civilians.

Ninjas fought everywhere, and when they did, they destroyed everything around them. Jutsus were impressive nowadays, and they did a lot of damages.

All in all, ninjas were _not_ loved by civilians. Accepted, yes, but that was it.

If civilians didn't ever have the potential to train their chakra, and were much more than the ninjas, then chances were that they would indeed, one day, hunt them and try to destroy them all.

Beginning by children, the easiest to kill, and thus preventing them to learn and progress, hence becoming as dangerous as an accomplished ninja. Kill the younger generation, let the old one die slowly.

So yes, they could understand what Harriet was saying. Well, it was highly doubtful that they would manage to eradicate ninjas – shinobis were simply _stronger_ than them, no mistake. Yet it would be tiring, to live in a world were more than half the population wanted to see you dead.

Kakashi nodded in understanding, grimly, and Harriet resumed talking.

"Anyway, there is two worlds in one. In the magical world, there is also three different classes of wizards – there was no real differences between them, mind you, but they were considered extremely important", explained Harriet, before conjuring a new glass, of water this time, and taking a sip.

Not only was she talking that much for the first time since more than a hundred years, and it made her thirsty ; but it was a hot day of November in Konoha. Fire Country indeed, they didn't seem to know what winter really meant.

All of this made Harriet thirsty, and she happily drank her cold, fresh water.

Hurrah for Magic !

She tactfully ignored the, yet again, muttered 'Kai's ; and continued.

"The first class is the Purebloods, so called because their ancestors were wizards. They pride themselves on not having muggle blood in their veins – but they succeeded by inbreeding. Then there's the Half-bloods, meaning the people with at least one magical parent. Granted, that class is a bit confusing, for the son of a pureblood and another person who isn't a pureblood would be called a Half-blood, whether his mother was a Halfblood, a muggle, or a muggleborn. Which is the last class : the Muggleborns, wizards with muggle parents, also called Mudblood by the Purebloods, since they believe that muggle blood is not much better than mud", frowned Harriet.

She had always found the distinction between them all ridiculous – and stupid.

Dumbledore, Voldemort, and herself – all Halfbloods, and they had been – and still were, for her – the most powerful wizards of their times.

So really, Pureblood beliefs were stupid.

(And, if you really wanted her opinion, Purebloods were stupid, period).

(Must be all this inbreeding).

"Wait", interrupted one of the ANBUs, ghostly voice echoing through the room, "in your... world, you separate the two different populations – magical and non magical. I get it. But you also separate yourself in three classes ?"

"As I already said, we're not perfect – no one is. Purebloods thought they were better than everyone else, and Muggleborns were new to this world, and they knew next to nothing about it. Not for lack of trying – though for many, it was that – but because they were _kept_ away from this knowledge by the Purebloods, who didn't want to see their so-called 'supremacy' disappear", patiently explained Harriet.

She then decided to continue with her first comparison of their two worlds.

"See it like that : you yourself have the shinobis coming from Clans, those coming from parents ninjas, and finally the civilian born. Can you honestly look at me in the eyes and affirm that they all think they're on the same level ?", asked knowingly Harriet, only smiling when no response was heard.

From what she's been told by her trusty snakes, Clan-born shinobis were smug, proud, and thought themselves better than the others. Not all of them, of course, but every ninja coming from a Clan were very proud of said Clan. Granted, most of them had the ability to back their feeling of superiority up, but they grated on people's nerves nonetheless ; and all in all managed to gain quite a number of enemies.

They usually didn't live for long.

(But, as far as Harriet knew, they weren't as bad as the Purebloods – probably because they fought alongside other shinobis, and had to trust them with their lives when on the field. You don't antagonize people that could, one day, save your life – and there was a mutual respect among all the ninjas anyway).

(Much better than the Purebloods).

"Anyway, back to the subject. There was this wizard, a very strong and bad one, who called himself Lord Voldemort. He wanted to take over Britain, our country, and exterminate muggles and Muggleborns, thus making the purebloods the only 'true' wizards of his government. He decided to do this with violence, of course, as all good villains are prone to do – but there was no laughing matter, that I can assure you. He and his followers, who were called the Death Eaters -", explained Harriet, eyes cold and hard, shrugging when she saw the skeptical looks of her auditory.

She interrupted herself for a second at this. Well, it was _true_ that their chosen names were stupid, she suddenly felt almost ashamed for them. She was ashamed of her own enemies, what a world.

She ignored all this as best as she could, and continued.

"They tortured, raped, killed, and laughed. There was a war, and that's when I was born", said Harriet, with a quiet voice.

She had seen too much of war to tell any of this with nonchalance. She couldn't – not when she was talking about what had happened to friends, and family.

Not when she had suffered torture herself. Not when it had been her _life_.

The shinobis around her took a grave look, and their posture changed to that of somber understanding. Not only were they just out of a long period of losses and suffering (the Yondaime' sacrifice and death, the Kyuubi's attack and all the losses that came with it, the aborted kidnapping attempt on the Hyuuga Clan Head's older daughter, only to have to _give_ Hiashi's twin to die because they weren't able to prove that Kumo had organized and knew about the kidnapping, the Uchihas' massacre by one of their own...) ; not only that, but as ninjas they knew death, torture, and the darkest parts of human mind.

They knew what people, who had of 'human' only the name, could do to others, for whatever reason – sometimes for no reason at all. They knew what could happen, especially in a war.

Then knew, and they understood.

That's why, upon hearing Hari-san words, as well as the sheer pain still fresh in them ; they knew it was the truth, that she wasn't lying, and acted accordingly. They were, it had to be said, enthralled in her story, because as far as they could tell (and they were ninjas, they could tell _very well_ ), she wasn't lying.

Not only there was her 'Unbreakable Vow', which they were still skeptical about ; but they were monitoring her heartbeat with their senses, and not once did it show that she lied.

Sure, it accelerated when she remembered painful memories, but not once did they hear the slight tremor, almost imperceptible and always spontaneous, that always accompanied a lie. You couldn't fake it, and while you could suppress it with training (they all had), it was obvious that she hadn't had that training.

They recognized the glint, wild and fierce and untamable, in her eyes for what it was ; but her hands weren't calloused, her visible skin didn't show any scar, except for a strange one on her left hand (and granted, she was almost entirely hugged by her deep green kimono, but still, they doubted she had much scars), she was soignée and pretty and soft, and looked pampered and spoiled. She didn't look threatening, even for their senses – and even if they knew that she was.

If only for the fact that she was talking of this war as if she had participated in it, and you had to be strong to survive a war, or even simply to find the courage to fight in one.

"Anyway, my parents were against Voldemort, of course, since my father was a Pureblood and my mother a Muggl – Ugh -", she interrupted herself, hand shooting up again to grip the kimono above her heart, face crisped by pain. The arabesques curled on the bare skin of her arm flared a menacing gold.

She thought quickly, and corrected her phrase.

"And my mother was _thought_ to be a Muggleborn".

The Vow was absolute – she couldn't lie. _They_ had thought she had been a Muggleborn, her parents and, indeed, everyone else ; and only Harriet knew that her mother had been a half-blood. So, while at the time she was talking about, what she had meant to say was true (at least as far as anyone knew), it wasn't true anymore.

She could feel the shinobis relax imperceptibly from the corner of her eyes, and knew they had finally understood that her Vow was true and whole. Well, took them long enough, she thought glumly, rubbing her breast.

The pain was still there, vivid ; and even if she had suffered torture during the war, it had nothing on what she was suffering now. Because, while she _had_ suffered under 'Doloris' and such curses ; the sheer pain that came from her magic, from something so intimate, so important – it was worse.

She would have to be quite cautious with her words, for now on.

"So you see, they fought against him. Then, they learned that my mother was pregnant with me, and went into hiding. But Voldemort had apparently decided that _I_ would be the one that would bring his downfall, and went after them. My parent's hiding place was perfect – but they trusted the wrong person. This person betrayed them, and revealed their home to his Master, Voldemort. The rest is history, of course. He came, killed my parents, tried to kill me, failed. I don't know what happened this night, even now, but I destroyed him, and I became famous for it", bitterly added Harriet, taking a sip from her ice-cold water.

The shinobis had tensed when hearing of a traitor, and she knew they felt something close to respect for her then. They had probably thought that she had had a great life, but to begin hers by being an orphan was hard, even if not rare.

She also felt their skepticism about her 'defeat' of Voldemort, but ignored it.

"That's my oldest memory, actually", suddenly confided Harriet, not quite knowing why. "My mother begging for my life, begging him to kill her instead of me, then the green light of the Killing Curse, and her dying, screaming my name".

She lost herself in her thoughts for a bit, reviving this old, old memory of hers. The pain it brought her was light now – she had experienced way more painful things, and had nightmares that were infinitely more hurting than this one, all coming from her other memories – but it still procured her a slight pang in her heart.

It was always, always accompanied by 'what if's. But Harriet knew better than to lose herself to those 'what if's.

"Well, so I became famous for ending the war, and defeating the most terrible Dark Lord of this generation. His followers were arrested, and send in prison, for a few of them. But most of them just bought their 'innocence'. Old families, lot of money, you see", darkly laughed Harriet, before shrugging uncaringly in a 'what-can-you-do' way. "As for me, I was left on my mother's sister's doorstep, in the middle of a cold night of October, with a letter. She was married and they had a son. They took me in, but never liked me, and I never learnt the truth about me, my parents, or my world", finished Harriet.

She shifted in her seat, to find a more comfortable position.

Reminiscing all of this wasn't a good thing for her. She had come to terms with it, of course (she had had to, if not for mastering Occlumency, then to keep her sanity), but that didn't mean that she liked re-living it.

She had accepted her past, and now wanted nothing more than to let it sleep in the deepest part of her mind, not to bring her any pain anymore, even if she couldn't control her nightmares. She had left her own birth world, to leave everything behind her.

She honestly didn't plan to ever say her story ever again after this. Whatever happened, she had decided long ago that she was done with this. She refused to let her past tie her, bound her, torture her.

"I discovered the truth at eleven, because it is then that Wizards' children begin to train their magic, and they do this by going to a magical boarding school. I had been on their lists since my birth, so not even my relatives could forbid me to go".

As ninjas, they knew how to read through the lines. They knew her family hadn't liked her at all – Hari-san never called them 'aunt' or 'uncle', but always 'my mother's sister', or 'my relatives'. She distanced herself from them, and she did it knowingly.

It wasn't some dark part of her past – though it was dark, and a part of her past. In fact, it wasn't a secret. It was not something she was ashamed of, wasn't something she tried to hide, something she tried to forget. It still hurt her, that much was obvious – but it was also obvious that she was past it.

It was her past, in every sense of the word.

They were smart enough to understand this, but they still memorized it. It could always serve as a weakness, should they ever need it. And it helped understand her personality.

Though, admittedly, it didn't help _that_ much.

They were honest enough to admit, at least to themselves, that they didn't quite know what to make of this strange little woman.

But as dumb as it sounded, they understood the people considering her famous for stopping a war. Especially considering that the 'Light' side, as Hari-san called it, seemed to be losing.

It hadn't been said, of course, but the simple fact that 'Vauldemor' had come after Hari-san's parents himself meant that they were important in this war, and active fighters – and for such important actors to be betrayed, and killed, in their own home meant that not only this 'Dark Lord' 's spies were everywhere and well infiltrated ; but also that he could basically do anything he wanted.

It didn't bode well for the Light side.

Still, they said nothing and continued to listen, fascinated despite themselves.

"What followed were years of fight for me", continued Harriet, relaxing further in her seat. "Hogwarts, the surest place of the world, my ass. There is seven years before graduating. From eleven to sixteen, I had to fight for my life at the very least once a year at school, without help except for my two best friends. Honestly, I managed to survive through sheer luck and will, not much skill at all, I have to say", she admitted, before smirking when remembering that now, she had luck, will, and a lot, lot of skills.

"Well, I know that I should have died, but I hadn't. I had to pass through my headmaster's test each year – and he is the equivalent of your Hokage", she explained, shifting again in her seat in order to find a comfortable position.

Those seats weren't all that comfortable, truly. Maybe it was done on purpose ? Or maybe they still hadn't created comfortable seats in this world ?

Would they be offended if she transformed her seat now ?

She shrugged her stupid thoughts out of her head, and just sent a cushioning charm under her ass. She sighed in pleasure as her seat suddenly became quite great.

"Anyway, at seventeen, I had to run away, because Voldemort was officially back and kicking – he _kicked_ a lot", she joked, but there was no humor in her voice.

"Wait, I thought you had – no, wait, you said 'destroyed', not 'killed', right ?", realized Sarutobi.

"Indeed", nodded Harriet. "I don't know what happened, but I only destroyed his body, not what was left of his soul".

One of the ANBUs – Boar, if she wasn't mistaken, at least his mask kind of looked like a boar – flickered next to her. Her bubble had a diameter of one meter, but he was standing in, even if only a bit.

No menace, so.

"What do you mean by that ?", he asked – or was it a she ?

She wasn't able to determine this. Not at first glance, since odor and body, and even voice were hidden or changed. But a glance at his soul revealed a man.

"Voldemort was terrorized of Death", she said at least, "So he did everything he could to prevent his own death. He had split his soul in seven pieces, so that even if you killed his body, as long as one of his containers was still on Earth, then he wouldn't die. Those containers were called Horcruxes".

The shinobis shivered imperceptibly. It sounded eerily like Orochimaru, even if they doubted _he_ had split his soul. But no doubt, he had done something as dark and unnatural as this.

Boar nodded, and disappeared back in his corner of the room.

"Anyway, I had to flee, because the Death Eaters had basically control of not only Hogwarts, but also the Ministry. I was enemy number one, and I had my face printed on 'wanted' posters about everywhere – and how cool is that ?", she asked bitterly, a shadow obscuring her eyes. Her smile was bitter as well. "I fought and finally won the war, at eighteen".

She vaguely thought of the 'Wanted' poster with her face on it, that she had carefully kept with her all these years – a remainder.

Not that she _needed_ one but – she wasn't sure why she had kept it. To remember, maybe, that she had made the good choice, deciding to leave Great Britain ? Memento of a period where _she_ was hunted by what was supposed to be the Government – but had only been a playfield for Death Eaters.

Remember that Wizards were fickle, vain, stupid – and above all, mindless sheep that blindly trusted what they were told by the Ministry. And the journal.

So she had kept it – what can she says ? She's a sentimental.

(Though, not to the point of sticking the poster to a wall – she kept it in her travelling bag, now in one of her trunks – she wasn't sure which one).

Anyway, no need to show them _that_. It wasn't to show, it was for her to keep. Nothing else.

Kakashi raised his own hand, not even thinking about how it remembered him of his academic years, all those years ago (though, granted, even then he rarely raised his hand, if ever – he already knew everything they taught, he wasn't a genius for nothing – but the others did).

"You _won_ a war at _eighteen_?"

Sure, he supposed she could be a genius too – but she had begun her training at eleven, by her own admission, which meant that she had had only seven years of training, and even then she had admitted that she hadn't had much skills.

And what business had an eighteen year old in a war ? Why was she talking as if she had _led_ the war ?

Well, he could admit that it was a bit hypocritical of them – eleven year old were in war, in their world, and even younger too if need be – but at least they had all graduated from the Academy, and they were as much protected as they could be.

She hadn't even graduated from her own academy ! And from what she had said, it didn't seem like she had had a lot of help.

But Hari-san only laughed, darkly, painfully.

"Oh, but who else ? You see", she said, straightening without even realizing it, " _I_ was the 'Savior', _I_ was the Chosen, _I_ had to fight and save them all – but them ? They owed me nothing. They waited in their homes, cowering and whining, saying that I wasn't making enough _efforts_ , that I should do _more_ , and _what was I doing_? I let a lot of people die, really, I should have done better, quicker – they would have, of course, but they _hadn't_. You see, it was _my_ job, after all – hadn't I destroyed Voldemort already once ?"

Her voice sounded bitter, hurt, and hateful. Whatever those people had done, they had betrayed her deeply, and they knew now and then that she would never truly forgive them. Never forget, either.

It explained a bit why she had been so ready to leave her world for another one – step in a dangerous and unknown place alone and without anything. She didn't even seem to have luggage with her.

"So you're saying that they had decided that it was your responsibility to kill this... Vaulemaur guy ?", asked Kakashi, a puzzled look on his face – though it was only visible in his left eye.

Harriet absentmindedly thought that his eye was way more expressive than everyone else's eyes, even if he only showed one and the others generally had a pair. Though he _did_ have a pair, he seemed to only open his red eye only every so often.

Right now, it was closed. Harriet really wanted to know the story behind this – but later. She was tired enough as it was, and there was a lot to talk about still.

Well, she guessed that when someone only showed a single eye to everyone else, that someone must learn to convey feelings quite well with it. Else, it would be terribly inconvenient to be understood – and he didn't look like a talker.

"Pretty much, yeah", nodded Harriet, sighing deeply. She didn't mention the Prophecy – she was almost sure Prophecies didn't exist in this world anyway.

She didn't want to hear, or even _think_ the word 'Prophecy' ever again. She was _allergic_ to Prophecies, she was.

"But they trained you, surely ?", probed Sarutobi, a concerned look on his face.

As a Hokage, one that was in office for the longest time in History, he had had to send children to war. He had seen two wars, after all, and while he never liked this, he knew that it had been choices that he had had to do.

Children could do things adults couldn't, even well-trained ones, and geniuses were an asset, especially in war times, when every ninja counted. But he had made damn sure to train those children as well as it could be done in those times, and he never sent them alone, without backup, or on suicide missions.

But to send a young girl of eighteen, from her own admission, against a man that terrorized their world since decades (it must be, since she had said that he had killed her parents, and even then his side was on the brink of victory, so he had to be an adult by then ; then count roughly twenty years before the last fight between him and Harriet – how old had he been ?) – meaning a man with years of training and experience...

That was a suicide mission.

Without backing or help ?

That was murder. And cowardice, and stupidity, and disgusting.

"Trained me ? I hadn't even graduated from our equivalent of your Academy", snorted Harriet, green eyes clouded with painful memories. "I had to risk my life every year – literally – then it was the real deal. Kill, or be killed. Admittedly, there were times where I thought that the second choice was terribly tempting ; but my friends' lives, and the lives of hundreds of innocent persons, were on my shoulders. I simply couldn't give up, you see ? And it was personal. Every year since eleven, he made my life a living Hell. In fact, he made my life a living Hell since he had killed my parents, when I was one year old. So I was determined to kill him – and I did".

"... Without training ?", questioned one of the ANBUs – but she couldn't know which one it was, since they hadn't appeared next to her this time.

And, though she knew that the voice came from her right, up in front of her, she didn't know which ANBU was hiding there. Well, it wasn't Boar. Except if they had somehow exchanged places, but she didn't think they had.

She would have felt it... Probably.

"Yeah, without training – I would even say that I had less training than past graduates. Our Defenses teachers were shitty, no lie. Not only we learned nothing useful, but they all more or less tempted to kill me. It's funny, actually", she said pensively, "the first one I had to kill when he tried to kill me because he was possessed by Voldemort ; the second one was the world's biggest fraud, and he tried to flee when one of his student was in danger, and tried to erase me and my friend's memories ; the third one, while great and the best teacher we ever had, lost control during the full moon – he was a werewolf, you see, and I adored him and considered him a surrogate uncle, but fact is, he tried to kill me – ; the next tried to kill me, failed, tortured me, the next one hated me because of what my father had made to him when they were both students – you get it", she surmised.

"And they were all _teachers_ ?", asked an incredulous Hokage, eyes wide.

What kind of Headmaster allowed this to happen ?

"Yeah. Rumors say the post is cursed, and I would say it's true", shrugged Harriet.

It wasn't really her problem anymore, and it had never really bothered her before. She didn't think good teachers would have changed anything, and anyway, it was quite Dumbledore-like to let things in this state, without even _trying_ to break the curse. Greatest wizard of their time, indeed.

As you could gather, she was _not_ a Dumbledore-fan. Not anymore.

Not when the man had made his best to raise her like a lamb to slaughter. Not when he had seen her as a tool. Not when he had kept her isolated, and tried to make her decide to give her life for the – no, not for 'the', but for 'his' greater good.

Not when he had done his best to keep her inheritances from her, thinking it would give her a reason to live, and he definitely couldn't let that happen. She was to die, and she was to do so _willingly_.

Not when he had already decided of her life and death, right after her parent's own deaths – right before letting her on the doorstep of her personal Hell.

"The post was _cursed_ and no one did _anything_?" asked incredulously Kakashi.

He couldn't believe it – nor could the others, he knew. He could feel it – and even the Hokage's neutral mask had cracked a bit.

(Well, it had cracked quite a few times already since Potta's entrance in the room, but whatever).

In their world, for ninjas at least, children were very important. To let their education to incompetent fools, that was unthinkable.

An maybe it was a bit hypocritical knowing that they had sometimes to kill children, given their jobs ; but they did their best to help their own. It was their missions, they had no choice (though in Konoha, this kind of mission was really, really rare), but they _had_ a choice when they weren't on mission.

They were ninjas, not monsters, not mindless killers, no matter what civilians might say or think.

Protecting their own kept them sane, and though a lot of shinobis were awkward and uneasy around children, they would die for any of them. They would die to protect an innocent life.

"Typical", snorted disdainfully Harriet. "A friend of mine once said that, to enter the Magical World, you had to let your common sense behind. That was one of the smartest things she had ever said, and she was a very smart woman – that is, before _she_ lost her common sense as well", she added, reminiscing Hermione.

Hermione, as she was, before... Before everything.

There was a bit of silence, which stretched for a while, since Harriet was once again lost in memories – not painful, but bittersweet, this time.

Finally, the Hokage broke this silence. As much as he would have liked to let her have a bit of peace, after everything they had learned about her, admittedly, shitty life ; he couldn't.

He was Hokage, he had things to do. He couldn't stay in his office, away from the present, forever ; and he still had many questions to ask, and a village to manage.

And, while she didn't seem like a threat to Konoha, he couldn't be sure – and a ninja was nothing if not distrustful.

"So, how did you kill him, if you were on the run alone ?"

Harriet startled out of her thoughts, seemingly surprised at his question. She frowned a bit, green eyes piercing his very soul (that was his feeling, anyway), before she took another sip of water, finishing her cup, and making it disappear.

"I never said I was alone, have I ?", she asked pensively, trying to recall the past conversation. "No, I was with my two best friends – more like the brother and sister I never had".

Again, her smile took a sad edge.

"As to how I killed him... You see, much like your Orochimaru", she began, and the shinobis all startled. With everything going on, they had all but forgotten about Orochimaru, whom she said was dead. "Voldemort was afraid of Death", she continued, ignoring their intake of breath at the remembrance of what she had written on her piece of paper.

"But", she added thoughtfully, "I think I had already said you that. Moving on, as I said, Voldemort created Horcruxes, and hid them, behind protections. That's what my friends and I did, during our run : we searched and destroyed every single one of his Horcruxes but one, and when only one was left, I let Voldemort himself destroy it, without even knowing it".

She had a very satisfied air on her – even now, she was still a bit smug knowing that Voldemort was the one responsible, at least partly, of his own death.

"Why did you let him kill the last one himself ?", asked Sarutobi, at the same time that Kakashi asked his own question.

"Why did he kill his own... safeguard ?"

They both had their hand raised in the air. It looked quite like the thing to do.

Kakashi nodded toward his Hokage, an apology and an acknowledgment of the priority of his question, but the Hokage waved a hand. Kakashi did have a good question. And, right now, he didn't really feel like an Hokage, and more like a student in an History classroom.

Except that, for once, the lesson was amazing, and nothing near boring at all.

"Well, the answers to both your questions are linked", sighed Harriet, wishing they were done, and she could go to sleep. "Voldemort made seven Horcuxes, but he knew of only six. You see, to create an Horcruxe, you have to kill an innocent. In our world, such an action tears our soul, and we lose a piece of it. Of course, it's more complicated than that, and there's a whole ritual to do, but fact is, to create an Horcruxe, you have to kill an innocent, then you take the ripped piece of soul and tie it to an object".

She paused a bit, before conjuring a new glass. She was so very thirsty, because it was so very hot in the office – and no, she wasn't talking about the shinobis in there (though shinobis all seemed to have _great_ bodies, and she wasn't a pervert – she didn't think she was – but she _did_ appreciate looking at them), since she could only see the Bastard – Kakashi, was it ? – and the Hokage... and she wasn't desperate enough to drool in front of an old man.

No matter that she was 123 years old right now. She had been out of Time, she hadn't aged – she had stayed someplace between the human world, and nowhere. She had had the feeling of being in a literal other world, very different from how she was in an _actual_ other world now.

She had seen people growing up, living, walking – but she had had the feeling of seeing it all through a window. Near enough to _see,_ yet distanced and unconcerned. She wasn't like them – she wasn't on the same plane, for all that they cohabited.

That's mainly why she had stayed with almost only animals and nature. There, even if she wasn't aging, and even if she saw everyone and everything die around her bit by bit – it hadn't been the same. No one judged her, and animals didn't care that she was immortal, or that she avoided creating links with them. She had been able to forget that she was literally out of time.

And anyway, she rarely stayed long in only one place. She travelled everywhere, wanted to see everything – but was always separated from the rest of the world. As far as she was concerned, despite the years she had lived, she was only eighteen years old. It was at that age that she had stopped ageing, and it was at that age that Time began Its course for her again.

Now, now she was a part of _this_ world. Time finally had a meaning for her – she was _like_ the others. Not 'like' as in, 'similar' ; but 'like' as in 'mortal'. She could die now, when Time was due at least, and the window's glass that had separated from the others had dissolved into nothingness. She could _live_ again, because now she had a timeline.

She was the same as everyone else – bar the fact that she could only die of old age. Still, the hundred years she had suffered out of Time meant nothing – she hadn't _lived_ , though she _had_ learned to live for herself.

She had learned to take care of herself, but _living_ had a different meaning altogether – one she couldn't quite describe, but one she could try and find now. She could try and connect with others. Experience. Be a part of something else.

She was startled out of her thoughts by a polite cough, and smiled sheepishly in excuse. She looked at her visible auditory, and shrugged, seeing their envious looks on her glass.

"Want some water ?", she asked. "I swear it's not poisoned"

They did look thirsty, as much as she could say (she couldn't from their looks, but they didn't know how to guard their thoughts from a Legiliment _at all_ , and while she was trying to tone her ability down, their minds were so strong that they all but _projected_ their thoughts to her), and she had no problem conjuring a bit of water for them all.

Caught wrong footed by the sudden change in subject, both shinobis blinked, before declining.

"You do know I can't lie, do you ?", she pushed. If even know they weren't at least a tiny bit trustful of her, then she had no hope for the future.

Kakashi was ready to decline once again, but the Sandaime hesitated. It could be a test of her truthfulness – and he had the feeling that she hadn't lied once since the beginning of their meeting. As said before, ninjas weren't trusting – but neither were they paranoid.

"I don't suppose you would have sake ?", he asked at least, strangely hopeful.

It was a crazy day – crazier than usual.

A bit of sake could only help.

"Well, I could", admitted Harriet, before crushing his hopes. "But I won't. I don't think I could manage to explain why I'm in your office, and you're all wasted".

"Water it is, then", sighed the Hokage, rubbing his temples tiredly.

He doubted he or his shinobis would drink enough to become wasted, especially in someone else's presence – but admitted to himself that it was surest not to drink at all.

Better that way.

(He could – and _would,_ the rest of the world be damned – drink a lot later).

He watched with a bit of awe the glasses suddenly appear out of nothing, and the water filling them quietly. While ninjas could create water – meaning take it from nearby sources or, for the best of them, from the very air around them – create a real glass with it was another thing altogether.

Magic, if it was true (and how could it not be ?), would definitely be a major asset to Konoha.

She had created six glasses, and he stopped her.

"Only two, please. My ANBUs already have theirs".

Partially true. They had their own pills, as disgusting as they were, and he wasn't stupid enough to possibly let her poison everyone in his office. Willing to trust her, yes.

Stupid, no.

Again, the woman only shrugged, as she seemed prone to do a lot, and four of the glasses disappeared silently. The last two floated leisurely towards them, through the air, and they took them prudently.

Kakashi hummed his, checking that no poison was in it, before taking a small sip through his mask, keeping it in mouth and trying to find a scentless poison. When neither smell nor taste revealed any poison known to him (and he liked to think that he knew almost all of them, considering he was sort of friend with Anko, the Poison Mistress of Konoha), he swallowed.

After a few minutes, he was still quite well. His body wasn't fighting any internal attack, and his condition was still top-notch (except for this recent wound on his left shoulder).

He waited for a bit still, before reluctantly nodding toward his leader.

Sarutobi then took a sip of water, and bit by bit, they reassured themselves seeing they were still alive. Looking up, they saw the annoyed look Hari-san was sending them both, but they only smiled back innocently.

They had taken a big bet, following their instinct, and they had won. Now they trusted the woman a bit more. If she had indeed been there to kill the Hokage, that would have been the perfect moment. But she wasn't there for that – in fact, they believed her and her unbelievable story.

Still, they had to know a lot more about her before trusting her – and for that, they had a lot of questions unanswered yet.

"Where was I ?", wondered out loud Harriet, letting the subject go.

She wasn't naive enough to think they would blindly drink everything she gave them, though it _did_ seem a bit over-cautious.

"You were explaining why he didn't know about his seventh safeguard", helpfully supplied Kakashi, not quite knowing how to pronounce 'Horcruxe'.

In doubt, he preferred to avoid saying it entirely – as he had been avoiding saying any of the stranger-than-strange names she had spoken about.

"Right", accepted Harriet, tilting graciously her head toward him in thanks. "So, as I was saying, when he came that night to kill my parents, he had already prepared the ritual necessary to create an Horcruxe. When he tried to kill me, I was of course an innocent. It ripped his soul – what was left of it. But something, supposedly my mother's protection, rendered him unable to kill me".

"Your mother's protection ?", asked a puzzled Hokage.

"Yeah. It's thought to be really archaic magic, one of the oldest forms of Old Magicks. She gave her life for mine. When Voldemort killed her, he _accepted_ her offer, even without knowing it. Magic is sentient, you see. His magic recognized the sacrifice for what it was, and it became magically binding when he killed her. So when he turned on me, not only did he rip his soul, but his magic destroyed his body for breaking his word. That, and he didn't kill me – he _couldn't_ ".

There was a bit of silence, before Kakashi menacingly took half a step toward her.

"I thought you said you didn't know what had happened that night ?"

Harriet raised an eyebrow. Good memory. Bad timing, but good memory.

"I don't", she admitted. "Know what happened that night, I mean. Everything I'm telling you is supposition. No one knows for sure, but that's the only thing I can think of".

Kakashi marginally relaxed, going back to his original place, still a bit cautious.

"Anyway. His body was gone, and his shard of soul was still here. But it didn't want to die. So, it went to the only place where it could survive. Me".

"... You ?", asked the Sandaime, not quite understanding.

"Me", confirmed Harriet calmly. "For seventeen years, I lived with a piece of Voldemort's soul in my head, kept out only by my own magic, but still within me".

She made no gesture to reveal her lightning-shaped scar, hidden under her fringe. She didn't want to reveal it, she didn't want them looking at it – she didn't want them _knowing_ it was there.

It was her secret. Everyone, in the Magical World, knew it was there, where it was, what it looked like. It meant a lot of things – her parent's death, the fact that she had been an Horcruxe, the fact that she had been 'chosen' by this three-time damned Prophecy...

Here, she didn't want it to mean a single thing.

As far as she was concerned, no one would ever know what it meant. Not if it wasn't important for them to know.

She wasn't considering it important.

"... You went and let him _kill you_?", asked incredulously Kakashi, both eyes wide under the surprise of the realization.

"Yes", she confirmed only, a bit resentful still that she had allowed herself to do that – had allowed everyone to manipulate her. She would have done it either way, but she didn't like remembering that her sacrificing herself was part of a _plan_.

It made it seem as if she had had no choice – as if her own sacrifice hadn't even been _her_ choice.

"I didn't have a lot of chances against him, you know ? He was stronger, and much more educated in magic than me. He hadn't kept his Horcruxes with him, so I hadn't had to fight him in order to kill them, so that had been the easy part. But I couldn't just let him win, even if I didn't see any way of winning against him. What I could do, though, was taking him with me", she said.

She was so very tired, now. She wanted to sleep – talking of her past made it resurface, everything all at once. She was using her Occlumency barriers to keep it together – but she wanted to sleep. A good night would soothe the pain away. She hadn't slept a lot ever since her arrival in the Elemental Nation – she never slept a lot, not since... ever, in fact – yet here, now, she wanted to sleep like a baby.

She felt she _could_ allow herself to sleep like one.

Maybe because she now knew she could work for the Hokage, and live in Konoha ? As far as she was concerned, right now, she could live in this village. She could work there. Her choice was done – the only one she was waiting for was the Hokage's. If he accepted her, then she would stay.

If not, then she would leave.

Because her choice was done any way, there was no anticipation, no anxiety. Only acceptance, and sleepiness.

She forced herself to stay awake – she could sleep later. There was a lot to do and say still.

But there had been a shift in the room's atmosphere right now. Shinobi were raised, and trained themselves, with the knowledge that Death could come for them every time. Every day. Every hour. Every minute.

From the moment they became ninjas, they were fated to die. Ninjas courted Death too often, it was impossible for them not to meet Her at long last.

Still, the best way to die, for them, was to die fighting. Fighting to protect what or who they held dear. Die knowing you protected people you loved. Die fulfilling your mission.

A meaningful death.

And to die, sacrificing oneself for others ? That asked for courage, determination, and a very good heart. Especially when others, at least in Hari-san's case, were strangers – ungrateful ones, at that.

Still, to be ready to die that way at 18 years old only – going to one's death, knowing there was no way to survive...

You could say that their respect for the strange woman in front of them just augmented, as it had been prone to do since the very beginning. The more they learned about her, the more they realized how good a person she was.

How strong.

They honestly needed more people like her, not magic-wise, but personality-wise – especially considering that in their job, people were prone to think about themselves first, or to let themselves be corrupted by the fact of murdering people every day.

It took a huge toll on someone, having to kill strangers for nothing, just following orders– sometimes even when knowing that the target they had received was an innocent, and good man or woman... A child, sometimes. To stay sane, and to keep kindness in oneself... That was hard.

(Which explained the strange ways ninjas had to cope with their jobs – also known as 'ninja's craziness', it could be seen in every single one of them. From the guy that ran around in a strange, green uniform and a weirdo haircut ; to the one that chewed on senbons, every one of them had their ways).

Still, it hadn't been her job to kill the madman, no matter what her fellow... _wizards_ seemed to believe. But she had still decided to do it. It certainly was worthy of their respect.

"And yet, you're still alive", was all that was muttered by Kakashi. He seemed to think for a bit, before adding. "You sure you're not actually really dead ?"

Hari shot him a half-heartedly annoyed look.

"Pretty sure".

The Jonin hummed noncommittally, nodding towards her to ask further explanation as to _how_ she was still alive, considering that all the odds had been against her, and that she had herself told that she had _let_ this... bad guy, kill her.

(Said bad guy's name really was unpronounceable. Sue him).

"In my world, there is a spell, called the Death Spell. It's an Unforgivable – its use is a direct pass to what pass as a prison for Wizards, but is really Hell on Earth", Hari announced, filling everyone's glasses again.

Well, conjured water was fresh, pure, clean, and all in all perfect to drink. No wonder all the glasses were already empty.

"This spell will, as its name very clearly indicates, kill whoever it touches. What's important here is that it do not simply stop the heart – it rips the soul out of the body. The death is immediate, of course, but it also mean that no matter where it touches, it will kill all the same", she explained, conjuring the spell in her right hand, and looking at the hauntingly beautiful, vivid green light.

The same color than her eyes.

She quickly made it disappear. No need to render her auditory even more nervous than it already was. Ninjas, when feeling danger, liked to attack first and calmly ask questions later, or simply flee if they felt it was better. Since they couldn't exactly flee the room... Well. Best not to provoke them.

(They seemed to appreciate the concern).

"Meaning, whether it hits you in the head, or just grazes your pinky finger, the result is the same. You're dead", she concluded blankly.

She had seen too much battlefields lightened by this color, lifeless bodies scattered across the ground – all for one spell.

So beautiful in appearance – so deadly and cold in truth.

A life, wasted. In one hit. Without scream, without sound. Just – just a green light.

"I fail to see how that explains you being still alive", flatly interrupted Kakashi, looking impassively at her.

She tried her best to convey her disdain for him with her eyes only – wasn't sure she succeeded. She didn't have his experience, clearly. (She also didn't try to kill him with her eyes, since she wasn't sure she _wouldn't_ succeed).

"I'm coming to it. Patience, will you ?", she asked, annoyed with his strange, stupid upturned U-smile. With his _eye_ , since his face was still hidden.

(She briefly wondered if anyone knew what he looked like. Probably not).

"As I said before, the Killing Curse target the soul. But I had _two_ souls in me", she revealed, smirking smugly.

Ah, to see Voldemort's face in Hell, realizing he had killed himself, just when he had had the possibility to _really_ be immortal ! A living Horcruxe that no enemy of his would have wanted to kill ! (Though, she knew that Dumbledore would have had no difficulty doing the deed. And a lot more of people, speaking about 'greater good' and 'necessary evil'. What's worse, she wasn't sure she would have stopped them).

Alas, only the dead could go in Hell – or in the afterlife, really. Not even she could go and visit... So it was all wistful thinking.

"My own, and _his_ shard of soul. When the Killing Curse hit me, I was given a choice – die, or live on. I chose to live on – see what a life without death threats would look like".

She greatly shortened what had been proposed – the difficulty of the choice. To die – to end it finally, once and for all, see her parents, her godfather, her friends, honorary uncles and ancestors... Find peace, finally.

Or go back, and resume fighting. Was it worth it ? Back then, it had seemed like it.

(Now... Now, _this_ was her last chance).

"So, you choose to came back to life ?", asked Kakashi, deeply interested in the young woman in front of him.

Even in their line of work, this was _crazy_. And – maybe because he was a shinobi, and all shinobis were crazy – he was fascinated.

"Obviously", she answered, rolling her eyes a little bit.

The silver-haired Jonin looked down on her. She glared. He raised a silver, mocking eyebrow. She stuck her tongue out at him. Sarutobi sighed tiredly.

He was too old for all this shit ! Why, oh _why_ was he still Hokage ?! _That_ hadn't been in the job's description !

He longingly thought that it should have been _Minato's_ mess to deal with – but the man had gone and died on him ! Sarutobi could have done the Shinigami seal himself, thank you very much ! But _no_ , instead, he had had to take the stupid hat back – and the paperwork with it !

Damn Minato.

And no matter how much he would have loved to pass the hat to Kakashi, the damn brat was way too smart for that.

Damn Kakashi.

Damn this woman ! It was way too early for such a headache !

 _And if at least they stopped their awkward flirting_ , he thought moodily, massaging his temples and staring blandly at the two _adults_ making faces at each other.

(Kakashi was losing. He couldn't do grimaces when having his mask on. Still, he fought valiantly, and his eye's expressions were worthy of respect).

"Hum", he coughed politely, trying to get them to concentrate on the subject at hand – which was _much more_ important than, well, _grimaces_.

And they _were_ an Anbu Captain for one, and an admittedly awe-inspiring survivor for the other. Kami, save them all.

"If we may continue ?", he drawled, whishing again for a bottle of sake. "You won the war – so it was over, wasn't it ?"

"It was", curtly confirmed Hari-san – but her eyes were haunted, and he knew enough about war, really, to know that though it was actually over, _she_ hadn't been over it. None of the wizards would have been over it. None could be – the repercussions of a war extended to years after it was over, sadly.

And especially for such an active participant such as Hari-san. No doubt, nightmares and regrets would have surrounded the young woman. Sarutobi allowed himself to feel compassion for the green-eyed, black-haired woman, before going on.

"So, why exactly are you here – why have you decided to... travel between worlds ?", he asked, unsure of the exacts terms for what she had done.

"Ah," nodded Hari-san, looking burdened and relieved at the same time. "Because, everyone went back to a normal life. More or less, I will admit, but they put the war behind them. And I couldn't".

She smiled self-deprecatingly.

"I'm what they made me into – I'm a warrior. I know war, I know how to fight – I have this mentality. I don't know how to live in _peace_ , I never have. So I couldn't settle down, I couldn't go on, I couldn't – and they would never let me do so, anyway. I've always been a public figure, for them – I've always been criticized, no matter what I did".

Her face contorted shortly in pain – not a physical one, but an emotional one. And that was only that much worse, because while you can easily take care of physical wounds, at least to an extent – emotional pain was way harder to soothe. But she quickly put a smooth mask on her face, an impassive one.

It was an impressive mask, and they weren't able to _see_ what she thought or felt, but they knew all the same. While her mask was clearly ANBU-level, she didn't seem to know how to mask her body-language, and it was easy for them to read her emotions just by looking at her. Even if the totally blank look that suddenly overtook her face was sort of disturbing.

It wasn't neutrality – it was the sudden disappearance of any and every emotion she had been displaying. She didn't seem to take care of hiding her emotions, but sometimes her face shifted and she showed nothing at all – as if she was suddenly lost in her own head, her own world, and didn't control her face anymore.

Yet her body-language was clear and for all to see, so she was still _here_ , with them. Only, the disturbing _nothingness_ was here to mask her pain.

"Even my victory on Voldemort – it had been prophesized, hadn't it ? So it was only _natural_ that I had done so. They were grateful, sure, but they never understood how much- – they never understood. It was a given, for them. _I_ was a given. And, since I was such a public figure, I was never good enough for them – and they let me know it", she concluded quietly, her voice devoid of emotion.

But her body screamed of pain, loneliness, and treason.

The shinobis themselves were repulsed. Not only throwing an untrained child in front of danger, thinking she was the one who would save them all, and placing crushing expectations of her shoulders was appealing... But to, then, when against all odds she had succeeded, simply consider it as natural, and never recognizing her sacrifices nor treating her like the hero she was...

It was disgusting.

What _was_ the mentality of those wizards people ? _Who_ – what _civilization_ let their warriors and protectors, as well as their heroes, just suffer continuously without even having the decency of expressing their thanks for what they had done ?

It was a deeply flawed attitude – and veteran shinobis were always treated with the respect they deserved.

To do otherwise was truly... unforgivable.

They could certainly understand now why she had not decided to stay in the world she had given so much to protect. And why she had decided to come to a ninja village. As sad as it was, once you've known war and fights, blood and death... Well, you simply can't live a peaceful life anymore.

Nightmares and paranoia prevent you to live quietly among civilians.

"And you choose our world ?", asked Kakashi, curious to know why she had chosen their world in particularity, when she had hinted that there was a lot of different worlds out there.

"I didn't really have a choice", smiled Hari-san, shrugging softly.

"What do you mean ?", frowned the silver-haired man.

"Well, while I could have chosen any other world, really ; yours was the only one I could learn about first before going there", she revealed. "Which was helpful, since I don't particularly fancy finding myself in a world I know nothing of – what if the very language is one I don't even know ?"

"You mean – how were you able to learn about our world beforehand, then ?", Sarutobi looked really interested, and maybe even a bit concerned.

"Oh, well, it's a bit funny", falsely smiled Hari.

"What ? I'm still laughing about your life story", mockingly deadpanned Kakashi, making reference to the fact that she had announced earlier that her history was a funny one.

(Which it hadn't been, by the way. Amazing, awe-inspiring, humbling in some ways, disturbing even – but funny, certainly not. Or, at the very least, Kakashi and the woman had _deeply different_ kind of humor).

"Yes, you do seem a bit slow", snidely replied Hari, showing a smile with a bit too much teeth in it. "Should we wait for you ?"

"No, thank you", he snarled back. "Go right ahead".

Sarutobi cleared his throat, whishing once again to be somewhere else – better yet, _someone_ else – before looking at them pointedly.

"Right", Hari-san had the decency to look embarrassed. You could never really know with Kakashi. "Well, when I was twelve, I had to fight a snake that wanted to kill me, as well as a lot of other children. It was in a school, and commanded by an enemy of mine, so I really had no choice but to kill it".

"So... You killed a snake ?", slowly enunciated Sarutobi, not sure to see the link between _that_ and the fact that Hari-san was allowed to learn about their world.

 _They_ hadn't known about the fact that there were different worlds out there, but if people from other worlds were able to learn about their own, then people could learn about _them_ – even spy on them, who knew what that 'magic' could do ? – and if they decided to attack, for whatever reason... It was a risk he couldn't take.

He needed to take care of this problem, if there indeed was one.

"Wait !", he startled before Hari could answer, eyes wide with shock and maybe even a bit of fear. "Was it Orochimaru ? Is that him who controlled the snake ? Is that how you learned about our world ? Did _he_ know about other worlds ?"

So much questions, each as important as the others – but for the last one, which was way more important than the others. The last one was scaring, at the very least. What did Orochimaru learn ? What did he discover ? What – ?

"Wow, wait, hang on", interrupted Hari, looking faintly amused – but that was no laughing matter !

"No, while _my_ enemy did have a lot of things in common with _your_ Orochimaru, they are – were – two different persons, that I can assure you", reassured Hari.

"They were ?", asked a much calmer Sandaime, even if still a bit suspicious.

"I swear they were. After all, _your_ Orochimaru still have – had hair and a nose".

"You mean your enemy didn't have those ?", and both visible shinobis looked faintly disturbed by this idea.

No hair, why not. No _nose_ ?

"He didn't. He was born with them, obviously, but he managed to lose them. Don't ask", shrugged Hari, before going on.

"A moment", interrupted the Hokage, searching something in his desk. He took a pipe, along with some tobacco, and made himself a good pipe. It was no sake, but it would have to do.

He lightened the tobacco with a fairly small fire jutsu, and breathed the smoke in deeply. He exhaled with satisfaction.

"Go on".

"Right", mumbled Hari, a bit disconcerted to see that even the Hokage smoked. She would have thought that he would have taken the utmost care of his health – but then again, ninjas could die anytime (though it was less of a given for the Hokage, since he was pretty well protected, and was no pushover himself), so it was no surprise that they decided to live life to its fullest.

It was doubtful that they would die from a _cancer_ , after all.

"Well, this snake was fairly big, way bigger than me. There was also the small matter of its skin being impermeable to magic and weapons, its venom being so potent it could melt stone, and, of course, the fact that its eyes were deadly".

"What do you mean, deadly ?", prompted the scarecrow, letting go of the no-hair-no- _nose_ subject.

"Well, whoever looked into its eyes died. It gave a whole new dimension to 'dead glare', really", she explained, still half-relieved no one died – except for Moaning Myrtle, sadly, and she was still astounded by the Wizards' stupidity concerning her death (really, Myrtle had been there, _right there_ , as a ghost, yes, but still _herself_... And no one asked her how she had died. Hari had known that wizards were complete _trolls_ , but she had thought that at least, they would try to protect their own children... But Myrtle had been a Muggleborn, and that meant everything, didn't it ?)– and half-astonished at the sheer luck they had that, indeed, nobody died.

Talk about the absolute weapon of Slytherin.

(She wasn't complaining).

"... And how did you kill it ?", wondered the Sandaime, remembering that by then, Hari-san had only had little more than a year of training – if that.

The odds weren't good – then again, this young woman seemed to thrive when everything was against her.

"With a sword, a friend's help, and a lot of luck", smiled gently Hari, keeping herself from laughing at their annoyed looks.

"Yes ?", encouraged the Hokage.

"Well, a friend of mine put the basilisk's eyes out – I mean, the snake's eyes ; and I managed to transpierce its head with my sword", remembered Hari fondly – which was kind of disturbing, since she had almost _died_ at that time, and it wasn't the sort of things you remember fondly.

Then again, if that was the case, then there was not a lot of things she _could_ remember fondly since, sadly, she had risked her life more time than she had lived years – at least, before the end of the war.

And even after, there had been some adventures and events that may have caused a bit of danger for her person – but that was neither here nor there.

"Your friend put the snake's eyes out ? How ? Who ?", questioned Sarutobi impassively.

She had never mentioned any friend – apart from her supposedly two best friends, but she never once gave their names, so they were not in good terms anymore. Which also meant that they hadn't died during the war, or she would have talked of their sacrifices, or even help, more thoroughly.

She still liked them a bit, though, else she tried to never mention them.

Anyway, she had to be talking of yet another friend.

"My friend was called Fumseck, and he was a Phoenix", she announced proudly, laughing a bit at their blank faces. "It's a bird, a bird of fire", she clarified helpfully.

"Right", deadpanned Kakashi.

"I swear it's true !", grinned the green-eyed woman. "An immortal bird of fire, whose tears can save a life. Even the deadliest of venom will be destroyed by them".

"Huh uh", nodded the Hokage, looking, for all intent and purpose, as if he was more ready to believe that _he_ was a woman, after all these years thinking of himself as a male.

"Well, you also didn't believe I was a witch, and from another world with that. And yet !", exclaimed Hari, having more fun than she had had since... since _decades_. "And do remember the Vow's still active, so I can't lie. Fumseck blinded the Basilisk with his beak. He pierced its eyes".

She went on, savoring their unbelieving looks of shock. She had the feeling that they did not often show that much emotion, that freely.

"That's how I was finally able to transpierce it with a sword, since, you know, I could actually _look_ at it without dying".

"Be that as it is, I fail to see how that explain you learned about our world", asked the Hokage, deciding that there was enough crazy things right now to bother asking about _more_ crazy things.

So what if 'immortal birds of fire' really existed in another world ? Not his problem.

Nope.

(Fascinating, though).

He pressed his temples tightly, whishing for an aspirin, but looked at the woman in front of him instead. Kami, he was so tired – and it wasn't even noon ! He couldn't take much more shocks than he had already suffered.

His world was literally _crumbling_ under his very eyes ! Other worlds, with other people and animals and customs... It is hard, to learn that your world (the one you thought was the only one) was but a drop in a river.

And for a shinobi like them, learning that there was other worlds with very strong threats, which they knew _nothing_ about, and which could come to their own world ; all of that without having the means to protect themselves... That was a nightmare, for people who liked to know everything about their enemies, or their possible enemies, or their neighbors, or about what was happening at the other end of the world – even if that would have no incidence on their day-to-day life, but just because _something_ was happening and they needed to know everything about it.

Knowledge is power. They needed to know about everything they could – and they knew nothing about these other worlds. He wanted a break.

"Well, after I killed the basilisk... -"

"Yeah, speaking of that", interrupted Kakashi, smirking at the annoyed look Hari-san flashed his way – thankfully, no one saw his smirk, since he had a mask. "You said you killed it with a sword, right ?"

"Yeah...", prudently answered Hari, not seeing his point.

"I thought you said before even that, that its skin was impermeable to weapons ?"

"Oh", Hari sighed, relieved it was only that. "Yeah, its skin was – I transpierced it through the roof of its mouth"

There was a stretch of silence, broken by the Sandaime.

"You transpierced the giant snake through its mouth ?"

"Yeah ?", she frowned, puzzled.

"Meaning, it was near enough from you, you could do it ?"

"Well, yeah, since it bit me".

Another pause.

"The snake, with the stone-melting venin, bit you ?", verified Kakashi.

"Oh, you wonder why I'm still alive ?", realized Hari. "Well, I did tell you that a phoenix's tears have wonderful healing properties, didn't I ? Fumseck cried on my wound, though I still have the scar", she replied, her hand automatically raising to the scar's emplacement, on the top of her right arm.

"Can we see it ?", asked the Hokage – it would serve as proof, seeing that since the very beginning, the only proof they had that what she was saying was true, was her 'magic', which enabled her to do things chakra couldn't.

But even then, it could be a sort of mutating chakra, so...

Hari-san nodded simply, rolling her sleeve up high enough on her arm, and showing a large, oval, and faded scar.

The shinobis shuddered, remembering that it had first been on a _twelve year old_ 's arm.

This magical world was sheer madness. It was insane, and stupid, and incredibly dangerous for children – and that was coming from experienced shinobis !

What _were_ doing the adults ? The senseis ? It all happened in a _school,_ had it not ?!

"Thankfully, it was only the tip of its fang", smiled Hari, releasing her sleeve. "I don't want to think about what would have happened, should the entire fang... – Ugh. I would have lost my arm".

It would have been a real pain to re-grow it – and that, only if the basilisk's venin was weak enough it allowed healing potions to do their work.

(And a new limb isn't like a real one anyway. She had been told it felt kind of strange and alien, which explained why Mad-Eye preferred an artificial leg).

(Then again, he was one of the very few – the others all preferred re-growing their limbs).

(Mad-Eye may have favored the artificial ones for the weapons he could hide in it, though).

"Okay", Sarutobi breathed deeply. "Okay. Fine. Just – a minute, will you ?"

There was a pause, again, and Hari felt a bit uneasy with the looks heavy on her. Well, she knew that while wizards lacked cruelly in common sense, it certainly wasn't the case for shinobis – far from it. She also knew that they protected children as best as they could, considering the circumstances.

And she was absolutely certain that they would have hated the wizarding world – or the wizards, at least.

She hadn't expected them to feel a raw _respect_ for her. When was the last time someone respected her – respected what she had done ? When was the last time someone had looked at her as a living, free person ?

When was the last time that she had been acknowledged for who she was, instead of who she was _supposed_ to be ?

It was... She would have liked to say that it was liberating, perfect, _something_ positive – but it was so new, so different from everything she had ever known, that she wasn't quite sure of how to act.

Still now, she was of the idea that what she had accomplished at Hogwarts was _no big deal_. Well, she had had help, hadn't she ? And luck.

It hadn't been thanks to her skills. It hadn't been 100% her.

She _knew_ it wasn't the truth, knew that what she had done was respect-worthy ; she knew that it had been the kind of things only _heroes –_ if only she believed they existed – would do. But that had never really been driven home.

 _Everyone_ had thought it had been the natural ending – her victory, everything she had done, everything she had sacrificed ; just normal. _She_ was just another witch, whose only quality in the Wizarding world's eyes was the immense fortune to her names.

But the looks in their eyes said otherwise, and that was... strange.

"Moving on", continued the Hokage. "The link between the snake and our world ?"

"Ah, yes", she nodded sagely, glad for the distraction.

Give her an enemy or something to learn – no problem.

Ask her to deal with positive sentiments – or, Kami forbid, _feelings_ towards _her_ , and she was gone.

Nope.

She wasn't good with that.

"The Basilisk, in our world, is considered as the King of Serpents. Turned out it wasn't so much the King as it was the Queen. In fact, the Basilisk I killed in my Second Year was the Boss of the Snakes, from your Snake Contract. Don't ask me why she was in such a place, I wouldn't know. I just know that she was magically tied to this place, and had gone crazy long ago. So I killed her – but point is, her title is an Hereditary one, so I became the Boss of the Snakes".

" _You_ are the Boss of the Snakes ?!", blurted out Kakashi, both eyes wide open with shock, after the moment of stillness that had succeeded Hari's announce.

"Yeah", she nodded, dismissing the suddenly coughing Hokage in front of her.

She completely understood their shock, for once.

Well, she had understood it before too, of course – she was honest enough with herself to admit that her story was a crazy one, and that she wouldn't have believed herself should the positions be reversed.

But, as far as _she_ was concerned, being the Boss of the Snakes _was_ the most shocking thing that had ever happened to her. I mean, come on – when you lived in a magical world, where _everything_ was theoretically possible, a lot of things (considered amazing by others) were pretty common for wizards – and even more common for her, considering everything she had experienced.

But even then, suddenly becoming the Boss of a Snake Clan, from _another world_ , was a different thing altogether. Even for _her_ , it was crazy – and she was _Mistress of Death_. Literally.

So it was good, yes, but _crazy_.

"You don't look like a snake", prudently muttered the silver-haired man, both eyes eyeing her with caution.

She rolled her eyes at him, eyeing from the corner of her eye the Hokage, who was still coughing, after having choked on his smoke. He gulped down the remaining water in his glass, and she kindly filled it again.

"I _obviously_ still have my human body, since, _you know_ , I was _born_ human", she drawled sarcastically, and the man managed the feat of rolling _one_ eye.

The other was once again closed – it was becoming quite frustrating, actually. It obviously worked, so why keeping it closed ?!

"But I also have a Snake form".

"You can... transform ? Into a snake ?", quietly murmured a voice, from the shadows.

And well, it was nice to know that the ANBUs were still listening. They could have been sleeping, for all she knew – though she very much doubted they would ever _sleep_ on a job.

They were far too competent and serious for that. It simply wasn't in their personalities.

"Yes", she confirmed simply.

"Can you show us ?", calmly asked the Hokage – at least, as calmly as he could – and _oh_ , she could suddenly feel the _piercing_ looks on her.

"I can, but I won't – at least not here".

Sarutobi raised an eyebrow. "I assure you that it's perfectly safe – now. No one, apart us, will see you".

"Oh, I know", sweetly answered Hari. "It's just that the room's too small. I _am_ the Boss of the Snakes, you know ?"

"Ah – ah, yes", muttered Sarutobi, not sure of what he should say now.

There was, again, a silence – but it wasn't, for once, a shocked, or tense one. It was a little, awkward silence, where none of the shinobis knew what to do or say, and Hari waited for their questions.

She had finished her story, after all, and – and maybe she hadn't been clear enough.

Meanwhile, the shinobis were trying to imagine how big her Snake form was (if she truly had one to begin with) considering that _Manda_ was huge, and a pain in the ass in battle – and she wasn't even the Boss.

The boss was the strongest, the hugest, the most dangerous – they had truly thought that it was Manda's title. That it was not meant that Potta's form was even more huge and dangerous than Manda – and yeah, okay, not a reassuring thought.

"That's how I knew about your world", she finally blurted out, when she couldn't stand the silence anymore. "Since, you know, Boss of Snakes. They told me everything they could about here, and I decided to come – which was possible since I was _linked_ to this world, as well as the Summon Realm. Since – yeah. Boss of Snakes".

Yeah. Well. She was a bit unsure right now, sue her. Rambling wasn't a bad thing, anyway.

"I... see", sighed the Hokage, not really seeing, but he understood what she was saying. He hadn't accepted it yet, but... That would come, right ? "And why did you choose to come here ? I would have thought you would have liked to see your world, without risking your life every time ?"

"Mmh ? I thought it was obvious", she sighed tiredly – and they could feel the exhaustion pouring out of her. "I was their hero, but above all, I was a public figure – not a private one, never a private one. When I showed no signs of settling, marrying and everything else, they decided that, since I was a _woman_ , I _needed_ the advice of a husband, as well as giving Heirs to my Families. So they took the choice out of my hands, and send me a letter stating that I would have to marry, or lose everything".

She reclined in her seat, a sad little smile on her face. A bitter one.

"I hadn't fought all my life, only to give up and submit myself to someone else – someone I didn't even like or know. I hadn't lost almost everything to become a trophy wife, whose only purpose in life was giving birth to Heirs, and smile prettily next to her husband. I _hadn't_ ".

There was a burning, fierce spark in her eyes, lightening her green, green eyes – and they all knew it was a woman they wouldn't cross. Not if they could help it.

"They took everything from me – I wouldn't let them took my freedom, nor what was rightfully mine".

And _oh_ , how she would have _loved_ to be able to see into the wizarding world for a bit ! Just – just to see what would happen into Gringotts.

She was certain _they_ weren't waiting for her answer to their letter, and she could almost see them, arrogantly walking to Gringotts, after this shameful decision was taken by the Magengamot.

The decision that would give some people everything that was hers – even her life.

No doubt, their first stop would be Gringotts. Not even her – no, she wasn't that important. What was important was the wealth that came with her Families – the two Families they knew of.

Potter and Black.

It was enough to make one kill.

They would walk importantly, right to the Goblins, and pompously ask to be given control of all the Potter's and Black's Vaults, by immediate decision of the Mizengamot. The Goblins, devious little bastards that they were, would only smile chillingly, and agree.

Them and she weren't in good terms, but she was probably their favorite wizard – witch, whatever – and she trusted them more than she trusted wizards. Which was a sad realization, really.

And she knew she would have sported the same toothily scaring smirk that they doubtlessly would have on their faces, had she been there.

They would ask – which Vaults do you want to read the contains first ? The Potters ? The Blacks ?

... The Lestranges ?

She could almost see the greed, already present, now _shining_ in their beady eyes.

Then, the list would go on.

The Peverells ? The Gryffindors ? The Slytherins ? The Ravenclaws ?

Oh – the greed, the winning smiles they wouldn't be able to contain, the awful, thirsty expression on their disgusting faces !

Only for the results to fall, sharp and crushing, definitive.

"The contents of these Vaults are... Nothing".

Yes, nothing. She had emptied her Vaults, long ago – gave back the loaded goblin-made objects, and took everything else. She even took the _dirt_. The Vaults were spotless, clean, cleaner than they had ever been, probably.

There was nothing there. Nothing for them to take.

They would be furious, of course, and the Goblins grinning. They certainly could appreciate her last, resounding action in this world, even though they hadn't liked to see their wealthiest client leave the Bank.

It was worth it.

They loved gold, but they also loved to see their enemies crushed. They could appreciate her action, even if it probably wasn't bloody enough for their taste.

They would protest, argue, demand – all in vain. The deeds of her commerce were securely kept in her Manors, and she had personally strengthened the protections and wards around her proprieties. The House-elves would take care of everything – stocking the money won by her shops in her absence in her different houses, accepting contracts in her name – they knew what to accept and what to refuse, she had been very clear in her instructions.

Nothing for them there either.

They wouldn't even be able to take her Seats on the Magenmagot, since she had forfeited her rights on them. While they could have acted as proxy, if the Seats had still been hers, such was not the case anymore. The Seats were empty, waiting for the next, true heir or heiress. Now, only someone approved by the Family's Magic would be able to take those Seats, and there was no one else to do that.

She would know, she had been very thorough in her searches – back when she still hoped she had family, somewhere.

Well, Malfoy would probably be able to take the Black Seat – but he would gain nothing from it, since he would only be able to vote on bills and such. Nothing important, really, nothing Harriet – no, it was Hari now – would regret.

Taking control of the Black Seats didn't mean he could take control of the Blacks' assets. Far from it, since she was the Head of the Black Family, and would stay it until her death. Forfeiting the Black Seats didn't mean forfeiting her position as Head of the Black Family. She would stay Lady Black until her time was over.

(Back then, it had seemed it would be forever, but now that she knew better, she was still satisfied by what she had done. She was assured to not die before a long, long time, after all ; and there was nothing to take _after_ her death. Only persons acknowledged and accepted by the Family's Magic would ever be able to take possession of the title of Head of the Family, and she was the last of them bar the Black – and she would never lose the name. It was enough for her – only some deeds stayed back there, since she couldn't take them with her into another world, but she had magnanimously sold them to her other Houses. There was nothing to the Black name other than the name itself. It had been just a precaution).

(She didn't care. Everything else was with her, now, and forever).

The Black Title would have been at Malfoy's child's disposal, after her death – but she had taken the Black Ring with her. And magic was strong and amazing, especially Family Magics ; but even they would not be able to call the Ring back after her death – not from another world altogether. It meant that no one would ever be able to become Head of the Black Family, even after she was long gone.

What a satisfying thought.

"Because, at the end of the day – even after I saved the _country_ , while they were cowardly hiding under their beds... Even then, I was still a woman – and it meant I was _less_ than a man. I fought for others all of my life – but I also fought for myself at the same time. I just decided I had been betrayed too much, and to fight only for myself".

She shrugged tiredly.

"I couldn't stay here – not after... Not after everything. I'm tired of having to be on the run, of always running away from my problems, because for all I'm what they made me into – a fighter – I can't fight against them. Not when I did everything to _save_ them. So coming here was my only choice – and my last try", she admitted quietly.

It was true. They made her who she was now. Not on purpose of course, they didn't set out for this to happen. They never wanted to transform her into a person that was unable to live peacefully, to settle and let go of the past. To let go of the War.

But fact is, if they had only _bothered_ to get to know her, even a little ; or simply to ask her things to do that didn't include _risking her life_ or _saving them all_ , then she would – maybe – have been able to... live among them.

They hadn't, and she wasn't.

And she had long ago stopped to care about that. It hurt, but then again, in this world, she was always hurt – one way or another. Physically by her officials enemies, and mentally by her so-called friends and people.

But now, she didn't care about reputations, about broken friendships, about hurtful manipulations. It was in the past, and though she was unable to let go of the war, of the memories, of the loss – she was still able to let go of _them_.

They weren't worth it.

The good, Griffindor-like Girl-Who-Lived was long gone. Or maybe, she had never been there to begin with. Maybe – no, _definitely_ , it had been an illusion the Wizarding World had created, and she had let herself believe in it.

It was easier to belong, if she was what they expected her to be, wasn't it ?

But she had never been like that – the Hat had been right, saying she would fit well in Slytherin. Her childhood certainly predisposed her for this House – waiting, pondering, carefully planning her moves, her words ; calculating the world around her in order to know when to react and when to stay silent...

She had never been one to rush in things head-on – it wasn't wise, it wasn't prudent, it was often hurtful, and rarely worth it. It went against every self-preserving instinct she had...

But she had ignored it all, just to _fit in_. To _belong_.

What an _absolute waste_ it had been.

Because, at the end of the day, she couldn't hide _herself_ forever, and it had shown when she had been betrayed by her best friends. She hadn't demanded answers, hadn't accepted to bend. Couldn't, not anymore.

She had finally listened to _herself_ , the only person that had never betrayed her, and she had cut ties. Cut her losses. Cut everything out of her life.

And she hadn't been happy, but she had been _better_ , and that was enough. Because she had never been happy, so she didn't know what it _was_ , and you don't regret something you never had.

And now, she had a chance to find happiness – whatever it would be – but above all, she had a chance to be _content_ if not happy, and that was more than she ever had.

She sighed, coming back to the present.

She was spent. She had finally said everything – there was nothing else for her to add. Nothing relevant to the subject, at least.

She wasn't about to let their know her status of Mistress of Death – no way. She may be ready to try and trust them, to _fight_ for this Village, and to find a new life there – but that was for later.

For now, she was waiting their decisions, and wasn't trusting them. Oh, she trusted them more than she had trusted everyone else, bar her _friends_ and _mentors_ ; but she had been betrayed too many times to trust easily now.

And she had _never_ trusted easily, to begin with.

(She should have been even more cautious – look at her, now !)

"I see...", finally pronounced the Hokage. "Can't say I _understand_ , not by a large margin – I'm afraid it will take some time for that – but I see".

"So that's how you came in our world", resumed Kakashi. "And why _Konoha_ precisely ?"

"That's an easy one", smiled Hari. "I need someplace where I will be able to settle and live in – I cannot chose a ninja Village just like that. I need one... One I will be able to fight for, one with a leader I will be able to... somewhat... obey to".

She grinned wryly.

"Konoha is the only Village that promotes and practice teamwork – and trust me, if someone knows the importance of teammates, it's me. You're the only Village that do things such as delayed payments, for un-wealthy clients. And _you_ ", she added seriously, looking at the Hokage, "are a man I can accept orders from".

There was another pause, as everyone in the room understood the meaning and importance of her words, before she ended.

"That's why I choose Konoha – I cannot stop myself for helping people in need, and I need the backing of a strong ninja Village for that. I don't think I'm being arrogant when I say that others ninja Village would destroy any civilian village I would choose to live in, should they ever learn about my capacities – and they will, sooner or later, you're all pretty good at spying. That rules out living with civilians – and I couldn't anyway. I need... action. Being in Konoha is the best choice – the only choice, really. The other ninjas Villages aren't good choices for me".

She contained a sudden yawn.

Damn, she was tired – but no was still not the moment. Soon.

"You're the only Village that doesn't completely consider its shinobis as tools – and I cannot let myself be used as a tool, not anymore", she finished, before adding as an afterthought. "Well, and the Snake Contract was originally with Konoha. We snakes may be sly and cunning, but we're not traitors".

The Hokage posed his extinguished pipe on his desk, massaging his temple with one hand, and looked pensively at nothing. Kakashi had long ago sat into the seat next to Hari's own, long legs extended in front of him.

She could also tell that the ANBUs had put themselves at ease, no longer concealing themselves in the shadows. She was no longer considered a menace – though she still wasn't _trusted._

No matter. It would come with time – if they had trusted her right from the start, she would have immediately left Konoha.

No need to associate herself with _idiots_.

A feeling of calm settled on her, now that she was done with her life story. She hadn't told everything, and it was a very much sugar-coated version of her life – but everything she had said was true.

Yet, not saying the worst didn't mean that she didn't _remember_ the worst. She was physically and emotionally tired – which was no easy feat, considering that her Occlumency barriers usually prevented her from emotional turmoil.

But they didn't work when she had had to lower her barriers – and even if she had already put them right up now, the feelings and memories still took a toll on her.

She patiently waited for their move – but first...

"My Vow is complete, so mote it be", she pushed her magic in the Elder Wand, and felt with relief the binding magic of the Unbreakable Vow slowly disappear from her body. Now, she didn't have to think twice about every word she said.

And she could lie or, at least, say half-truth again.

Her actions won her raised eyebrows – only two were visible, but still – but she only shrugged, letting them know that her story was really over, and that she had nothing to add.

"What about Orochimaru ?", demanded Sarutobi.

"What about him ?" she frowned.

Why were they talking about this... creepy crazy _thing_ ?

(Someone with a tongue _that long_ was not human).

The man sitting at the desk shot her an annoyed look.

"You said, in your paper, that you killed him".

"Oh, right !", she exclaimed, understanding dawning in her eyes. She had completely forgotten about this. "Well, I'm not entirely _sure_ he's dead, to be honest".

" _What_?!", snapped the Hokage, Killing Intent filling the room – but once again, Hari didn't feel anything.

"Hey !", she defended herself. "I killed him _four_ times ! He kept vomiting himself, it was _disgusting_ ! Then finally I killed him _again_ , and he didn't regurgitate himself – but now I'm almost sure I saw a kind of little white snake slithering away, so I'm not so sure anymore. Chances are, if your bad guy is as annoying as mine was, he's still alive".

And, yeah, okay – it was totally something Orochimaru could do. Vomit himself. Doing everything to assure he wouldn't die easily.

Before they had the time to nod their understanding, Hari-san continued, looking pretty defensive.

"I killed him _four_ times, so really, you can't fault me for saying he's dead ! _Technically_ , he _is_ !"

Now that she thought about it, why _hadn't_ she taken his soul ? It was a disgusting and twisted one, but at least she would have been sure his worthless, disgusting life was over, with only a simple _Avada_.

Why hadn't she – Was it Fate's meddling ? Again ? Had Fate determined Orochimaru still had something to do ? Was there a Prophecy (Ugh...) in action in this world, too ?

God – no, Kami – she hoped not.

"Yes, I believe you", sighed the old man, raising his hands in a peaceful gest.

She frowned a bit still, judging him with her eyes – and Kami, he hadn't felt like _that_ since his _mother_ had looked at him when he was in trouble, _so very long ago_. Then she nodded, taking a piece of paper out of her pocket, and slowly deposing it on his desk.

He appreciated the fact that she did everything in her power to look as non-menacing as possible – though, if what she said about her... magic, was true ; then even if she _was_ menacing, they would be powerless to stop her.

What a frightening thought.

Then again, his gut told him that she was a trustworthy person, and that she hadn't lied to them. And he always followed his guts – they never led him wrong.

(Didn't mean he suddenly trusted her).

"What's that ?"

"The creepy-guy last body", shrugged Hari-san, settling back in her seat. "I burned the other three".

Pushing a bit of chakra in the paper, he wasn't startled by the puff of smoke that exploded suddenly. _That_ , at least, was _normal_.

He looked with sadness at the prone corpse of his, once, favorite student. The man he had considered for the position of Hokage. Oh, how much he had failed.

He sealed the corpse back. He would deal with it later. Give it to the ninjas in the Research and Medical Department – they would search for any information present in the body.

He didn't ask if she was the one who took the Snake Contract back from Orochimaru – the answer was pretty obvious – what with her being the Boss of Snakes, and having killed Orochimaru.

"So you want to join Konoha. As a kunoichi", he finally said, going straight to the point.

"Yes", nodded the woman seriously.

"Just like that ?", snorted Kakashi.

"No", she glared at him. "I told you everything relevant about me, and you know more than anyone ever knew. I _know_ I can help this Village, very much so, and you know it too. However, there is conditions – conditions I won't negotiate".

"Such as ?", asked the silver-haired Jonin, narrowing his eye and glaring right back.

"I, for once, will never kill an innocent. In this world, it does nothing to you – except mentally, I know – but for us wizards, killing an innocent _tear_ at our soul. I would lose a piece of soul each and every time I kill one – and that is not an option. I cannot – I _refuse_ to kill an innocent".

"You fought a war", objected Sarutobi. "Surely you already _had_ to kill an innocent ?"

"Never", quietly admitted Hari. "I saw some die, yes, but I never killed one – I never could. Not only for what it does to the soul... But...".

She paused a bit, searching her words, before taking a deep breath.

She seemed to do that a lot.

"Voldemort and me... we weren't that different. In fact, we were quite similar. In appearance, before he did all those rituals, but also in our upbringings. I can't – I _know_ I could have turned up like him. It would have been so _easy_ to hate everyone – non-magical people for my family, magical people for their actions towards me... So _easy_. You can't understand how that frightens me", she revealed, looking at the Hokage in the eyes, serious as she had never been.

"So I took great care to kill only Deatheaters and the like. I would never kill an innocent. I can't, still know. I won't back down from this".

And, from the iron-like quality of her tone, and the sheer determination burning in her eyes, she wouldn't indeed back down.

"What else", nodded Sarutobi, showing that he accepted this first condition.

"I will not obey and follow blindly. I did that once, and was betrayed. I will not follow stupid orders, nor will I do something you told me to do, if I think I have a better solution".

"Mmm... Acceptable", cautiously accepted the Sandaime – if push came to shove, he would simply have to convince her. He was skilled with words – and he would never refuse advice, especially if she proposed what could possibly be a better solution to a problem.

"Is that all ?"

"One last thing", she smiled sheepishly. "My body isn't as performing as yours are. I mean, I'm quite up-to-date with this world's standards ; but in my birth world what you do, especially physically, is impossible. I will tire easily if I do too many really physical missions – so I reserve the right to, sometimes, and with good justification, refuse missions. Take holidays".

Sarutobi looked at her pensively, fingers absently turning his pipe over the desk, before he accepted. It was true that her body was in good shape – in excellent shape, in fact... for a civilian. As with everything else, she was saying the truth.

"Very well. But if the mission is really important, then you will have to make an effort. Teammates assigned with you for the mission will help you, if it comes to that".

Hari thought about it a minute, before she relented.

"Very well".

They continued to talk well into the afternoon. They were all hungry, but if there's something magic can't do, it's conjure food. Sure, Hari could take a sheet of paper, and transfigure it into a sausage – but she wouldn't recommend _eating_ it.

Except if, well, you liked paper. Because for all it _looked_ like a sausage, it was still, fundamentally, paper.

So they were all more or less hungry, but they managed to discuss everything through.

Hari-san had already explained that, should another Ninja Village learn about her existence and capacities, they would go after her. The fact that Konoha was, still now, considered the Strongest of the Five Major Villages was a great advantage, since it meant that they would think twice before attacking.

Furthermore, Hari had already decided that she wouldn't reveal her magic – not if she could help it – outside of work. Meaning, as far as civilians and spies were concerned, she was and would only be a regular kunoichi. One that was so skilled with spying that she had managed to create a jutsu that completely masked her chakra coils. Perfect when you try to infiltrate a place without being caught.

Well, she would not exactly be a _regular_ kunoichi, since she was to be presented at Konoha as an Hime. It had already been decided long ago by Hari. This status allowed her a lot more privacy, and she wouldn't have to keep a low profile – wealthy people were known for their eccentricities, after all (?) .

She had, of course, showed them her Gold Trunk. Hey, she had especially kept it apart, for this very purpose ! She wasn't going to pass the occasion.

And, oh, but it was funny as Hell. Their incredulous faces, looking repeatedly in and out of the trunk, trying to understand _how_ it worked, trying to assimilate that _yes_ , the inside was way bigger than the outside ; that _yes_ , there was way more space in it than in all the room ; and that _yes_ , there was a lot of gold in it – and it was only _one_ trunk.

There was a lot more of them.

(And _yes_ , they _were_ hanging from her necklace. Yes, yes, the miniature little trunk there. It contained the other trunks. No, no, she wasn't lying – why, hadn't she proved that she wasn't a liar ? No, no, she wasn't laughing nor making fun of them. Why, the very idea !)

Finally, all was said and done.

Hari-san – no, Hari-Hime now, would undertake the one-year test period as a new civilian of Konoha, since such was the rule. She would be under watch by the ANBUs, and when the year was done, a secret Council meeting would be held, with both the ninja council and the civilian council present, where her acceptation in the ninja Corps would be decided.

The councilors would be sworn to secrecy on this, whether she was accepted or not, but everyone knew that it was only for the sake of the rule. It was obvious that she would be accepted.

She was far too precious.

The only tense point was when the Hokage decided to assign her a bodyguard. It was protocol, of course, since she would be targeted by a lot of enemy ninjas when her status as an Hime would be revealed.

She had protested, and tried to negotiate (she could very well protect herself, thank you very much !) before relenting. It was protocol, and it _was_ better that way. She wouldn't have to reveal her magic that way.

Problem was, the Hokage had decided that he had the perfect shinobi for this mission. He needed someone strong, someone loyal, and someone in the secret. Obviously, her story would not be revealed to everyone (especially considering that there may be a mole in his ANBUs).

No, only the persons present in the room, as well as the ANBUs and Jonins Commanders, would be the only persons knowing the truth. It was enough persons already.

So, his _perfect_ man for this mission was, _of course_ , the silver-haired bastard.

Don't get her wrong – he looked strong (and he must be, since the Hokage had asked him to stay at the very beginning, and not the other Jonins), he was handsome (as far as she could tell – and that was always a good point), and he knew the importance of teamwork (the appreciative and approving look he had sent her way, when she had explained what she thought of teamwork, had been a big giveaway).

(There had been some muttering between the two men – the Hokage saying that he had done enough time in the ANBU, that he was running on fumes, that he should take a pause, step back a bit, stop doing _suicide missions_ , choosing them specifically... All in all, Hari had understood what had been murmured between the two – she wasn't the only one trying to run away from her past, though _his_ method seemed much more... definitive).

(Kakashi finally complied. Muttering darkly under his mask. Oh, joy).

Finally, _finally_ , the meeting was done.

Papers were signed, hands were shaken, she shrunk her trunk again after having paid the fee for becoming a citizen of Konoha , and she was lead by Kakashi towards an hotel, in which she would spend the night _sleeping_.

 _Finally_.

(The Hokage had proposed his Compound for the night, and though she knew it would have been really protected, and _he_ would have been able to have her under watch way more easily, she still preferred an Hotel).

(She would search for a house, in which to live, tomorrow).

(Especially considering that she would have a _host_ in her house, for a whole _year_ ).

(At least, he was good eye-candy).


	3. First Week In Konoha

Hello, everyone !

So here's the 3rd chapter. Yay ! I'm ever so happy I never promised to post regularly, because I wouldn't have been able to respect that promise. I like to think I don't break promise easily, see.

I'm in my final exams, so it's busy busy busy – I, in fact, hear my European Institutions lessons calling from me right now, and will only be able to escape going for so long – but I hope you'll enjoy this chapter anyway.

As an answer to some reviews, though : YES, Fumseck is Fawkes. Sorry, but I know the French names, and the English ones aren't as natural for me. I'm used to the names in French, so I don't always realize I didn't use the right ones. It's like 'Drago' & 'Draco' – I don't even know which is which. Heh. Don't hesitate to point my mistakes to me :)

I also hope this chapter will be easier to read than the previous two :-/

In any case, enjoy !

* * *

Hari Potta, newly arrived in Konoha and currently undergoing the one-year trial to officially become a citizen of the village, walked leisurely along the street. She was trying to map Konoha, magically placing invisible landmarks on the walls. She had decided to make something of a Marauder's Map – except, obviously, it wouldn't show Hogwarts, but Konoha.

The fact that she already knew how to create a Map, (the Marauders' Guide had been most helpful) and that Konoha was less tricky than Hogwarts (here the streets had the decency to stay in one place, for which Hari was very grateful), didn't mean it was an easy task. Konoha was big, and large ; and she herself was prone to get lost easily. She had never been that good at the orientation thing – when on the Horcruxes' Hunt, she had heavily relied on the stars, patting herself on the back for taking a liking to Astronomy.

It had been sufficient – more than enough. Magic had done the rest – never underestimate the handiness of a _Point-me_ charm.

Here, the sky was _different_. She wasn't sure she could tell how – the stars _looked like_ they were the same, but she was almost sure their emplacement was... wrong. And where, in her old world, she had been able to use magic to direct herself, it had been because her magic connected to the Earth's, and thus found the place she was searching for – since Magic was everywhere, then it was obvious that it could guide her, wherever she was and to wherever she wanted to go.

But her magic couldn't connect with this world's chakra, so the _Point-me_ spell was useless if she hadn't been in the place before, thus marking her with her magic (with each step she took, she let the smallest bit of magic seep into the soil, thus creating a map of some sort that she would be able to use later – but not a real map, more of a seventh or eighth sense – she had so many of those...). The spell would still work if she was searching for a person, though, because she had adapted and now searched for a person's _soul_ , and not magic.

Perks of being Mistress of Death.

It was, she had discovered early, much more efficient, since wards could conceal someone's magic – not someone's very soul. But anyway.

She was, for once, thankful that Kakashi had been appointed as her bodyguard. _He_ never got lost in Konoha, and he had helped her countless times. Now, if only he could stop smirking when she was forced to admit that she was lost, and to ask for his help...

Anyway, the Map was coming nicely – very slowly, but nicely. She theoretically knew where some places where, her snakes having told her what to expect of Konoha – but they had never been particularly interested in architecture, what with living on the ground and all. And it had changed quite a bit since Orochimaru's defection, especially considering that the Kyuubi's attack a few years later had destroyed a lot of buildings that had had to be built anew.

And she had been in Konoha for two days shy of a week – making that her twelfth day in the Elemental Nations. You couldn't possibly expect her to suddenly know the village entirely ! She hadn't even been out that often. The first four days she had rested at an inn, watched over by so many persons (ANBUs, plus the suspicious Jonin here and there) that she had considered becoming invisible for a little bit. Sadly, she had recognized the potential problems that would raise, and had instead gritted her teeth silently.

The fifth day – today, a surprisingly warm day of November, 13th – she had found the house she would live in as long as she stayed in Konoha. Apart from visiting the houses that were to buy, that was the first time she was outside of the Village.

She was, right now, at the market, the Jonin trailing next to her, boredom rolling out of him in waves. She supposed she could understand – last week he had been doing high-ranking missions, with a lot of action and danger ; and now he was basically acting as a guide, showing her Konoha, as well as watching her.

Not particularly exciting.

Hari herself was… content. She was not yet missing the excitement some danger would bring her, though she would have liked to wear something more practical. She was wearing a dark blue, silken kimono ; keeping in memory the fact that she was, for all intent and purpose, an Hime. And nothing more.

An Hime whose family had been killed long ago, and who had decided to settle in Konoha. She knew it would appear strange, considering that wealthy people all lived in the Capital, next to the Daimyo.

But the very idea of wasting away in a Court, with balls and niceties, almost made her shudder in horror. She hadn't spent almost twenty years in her own world avoiding this kind of things before saying 'fuck it' and leaving England altogether, only to be stuck doing it there. No. Way.

She hated this. For all she was a Lady – sorry, _Hime_ – she was a warrior before everything else. She wasn't made to sit and pass time peacefully. Not anymore. Maybe once, when she had been a toddler... but that time was long gone. For now she was acclimating herself to the Village, and to the world itself, really – but soon she expected to feel the itch that pushed her to do dangerous things (such as exploring old, forgotten temples, or travelling between worlds).

Right now, she was walking slowly, gracefully – not that she was aware of that fact, since it came with her countless hours of training and was done unconsciously by her now – and regally. _That_ was in her blood.

Her long, shining black hair was swept up in a bun, kept in place by her trusty pins, some bangs falling naturally over her forehead. They covered her scar, as they always did. Vivid green eyes looked around, unconsciously watching her surroundings like an ingrained habit, and looking curiously at the stands.

She was here to buy food, after all.

She had finally found a house, yes. The real estate agent had had a strange and puzzled look on his face, when Hari had asked for a house with the largest garden possible. She hadn't cared for the house itself – though she had rejected one she hadn't liked.

She had finally found her ideal – a nice house, nowhere near as big as her Manors had been, but way bigger than the other houses in the major part of Konoha. It was in a wealthy neighborhood of Konoha, with a lot of space between the houses. She had liked the fine-looking house, with ivy spreading unchecked on the walls.

It did look a bit derelict, but nothing Magic wouldn't rectify quickly. And the garden was large. She hated houses with no garden – and with one, she would be able to train out in the open.

Not that anyone would _see_ her.

When Kakashi had proposed to trap the access to her newly-bought house, she had almost been offended. To suggest that a Ward Mistress wasn't able to protect her own house was a grave insult, in the Wizarding world. But she had realized that Kakashi didn't know that – didn't even know she _was_ a Ward Mistress, much less what it _meant_ – and really thought she had no means of protecting her house.

Oh, the poor man.

She was excellent at wards, way better than the usual Ward Master or Mistress – it came with being a tiny bit paranoid, often on the run, and trusting only herself with her own protection.

(That, and the fact that she found warding fascinating).

(And it's not paranoia when they're really out to kill you, as they say).

Still, even if he didn't mean it as an insult, she had been touched in her pride as a Ward Mistress, and had assured him that she was perfectly capable of protecting herself and her house, _thank you very much_.

At his skeptical air, she had proceeded to do so immediately.

There had been a small, awkward pause on her part.

She had had to consider which wards she would place – some were more efficient than other, but couldn't be weaved with some very important wards. Some she wouldn't need – she very much doubted she would need Anti-Animagus or Anti-Apparition or Anti-Portkeys wards.

It helped, since those wards were difficult to place with others, though they were basics. They often weakened the whole structure, even if only marginally, so it was good to not have to place them. There was a lot of wards that were vital in the Magical World, that she wouldn't have to cast here. That was quite helpful, even if it did lessen the challenge. Yet it opened a whole new choice of wards that were more rarely used in her old world, and she now was faced with the prospect of creating a warding chain tailored for her new house, and for her needs.

She was already fascinated by all the possibilities, and could scarcely wait to begin.

Well, for now the wards would be only temporary, until such a time she had found the wards she wanted to cast around her property... but she would need to read a few more books on wards before that. The most complex wards, that she had endeavored to learn, where extremely useful... in the Wizarding World. Not so much in the Elemental Nations. So those were useless, and the most basic wards would be very interesting to learn, now.

That would take a bit of time, though.

But for now, came the choice of _how_ to cast those temporary wards.

Before... _travelling_ , she had obviously trained herself in casting spells. Most wizards did so with a wand, an incantation, and a dubious aim.

She didn't need a wand, nor an incantation – but she did need to have a perfect aim. What was the point in casting a spell, only to have it pass three meters from the target ? More importantly, the magic casted was visible : a flash of various colored lights could always be seen leaving the wand, and their courses could be followed until they touched the target, or an object. That wasn't very discreet, she had to admit, but that was how it happened.

Before she had even considered leaving her old world, she still had a beam of light that was, though faster than many others, very slow for a world such as the Elemental Nations.

Ninjas were insanely _fast_ , and visible lights travelling at middle speed ? That wouldn't help her at all. They would probably have laughed at her for a bit, before trying to unsuccessfully kill her. And, though whatever they would have tried wouldn't have killed her, it would have _hurt_ – both her body and her ego.

Immortal didn't mean insensible to pain.

(That sword-through-her-chest stuff had been a one-time thing, okay ?! Adrenaline had muted her pain !)

So she had trained, suppressing the light (which was, in fact, only wasted magic – and it had been hard to learn to control perfectly her insane reserves of magic), and drastically ameliorate her spells' speed. At first, it had been more of an idealistic dream than a reality – but then Death had off-handedly commented that wandless magic was _invisible_ , which meant that the magic was so controlled that there was no excess wasted.

Now, Hari wasn't the smartest woman in the world (not even the oldest, despite her literal immunity to Death), but if wandless magic needed such a perfect control that when used, it couldn't be seen, then so could wand magic. It was _logical_. There was a _precedent !_

(Not that she cared about precedents, especially knowing about the narrow-mindedness of the Wizarding world, even concerning Magic ; but it was nice to know that it wasn't a _dream_ anymore).

(Plus, Death's comment had basically been an encouragement – so she couldn't _not_ succeed).

(And have you met her ? She was _stubborn_ ).

She now was able to send ten spells in half a second, more if she was chaining them ; and they were invisible and travelling insanely fast and silent. Since ninjas weren't able to _feel_ magic, it would certainly been more than enough. Hopefully.

But what was the point in stupidly stand in her garden, from Kakashi's point of view ? If he wasn't able to see her magic, then he would think that she wasn't doing anything special.

He was skeptical enough as it was.

So she had decided to make her magic visible – better that way. Even if he only saw beams of green, blue and red lights (warding magic was only in those colors – and don't even ask her, she had no idea why), at least he would know she was doing _something_.

He would still be skeptical, yeah, but at least he wouldn't think that she was just waiting stupidly for something to happen.

She had, of course, directly tied him to the wards. It had been a bit tricky, since he didn't have a magical core, nor a magical signature. So she had simply tied his soul signature to the wards – each soul was unique, after all, and none could be _imitated_. As Mistress of Death, she was very sensitive to every breathing person's soul.

Terribly useful.

(Though she would try to find a way to tie ninjas or civilians another way. To tie someone's soul to a ward meant learning this soul to a certain extent. Which meant that she would _feel_ Kakashi's death when his time has come, and she didn't fancy feeling every soul she had taken the care to know depart this world, when their time was due. Knowing when people she knew and had come to care about to a certain extent died wasn't something she wanted to experience, hence the need to find another way to tie ninjas to her wards)

(But that was for later, since she first needed to cast her final wards, and would probably need to create a small warding ritual just for her house, as well as use physical anchors for her main wards, in the form of warding stones. She would have to prepare the stones, of course – one can't just take some random stones, engrave them with the desired Runes, and hope for the best. No, no, she would have to specifically treat the stones with warding magic, and use some Arithmancy to place them adequately).

(It would be long, of course, and complex. But it was the best way to cast the large, intent-based protecting ward she was already planning to use – and she would not stop until she had succeeded).

And now, after having taken care of her house, three hours ago – stunning Kakashi by taking the furniture out of a trunk that she had taken out of a trunk, than she had taken out of the trunk pending around her neck (he had seemed a bit pained at that) – she was buying everything she didn't have.

That is to say, food.

She hadn't thought to pack food – hadn't seen the need. Really, if push came to shove, she would just _hunt,_ she had thought. And she had indeed done that the first weeks in the Elemental Nations, back when she had been searching for the creepy Orochimaru, and also when she had been walking toward Konoha. Some animals were strange (she didn't know leeches that _big_ could exist, it was an _abomination_ ), but she supposed that deer, rabbits, and the like were fair game almost everywhere.

At the very least, it was okay to eat them. She knew for sure they weren't poisonous – though her snakes had warned her to never hunt deer around Konoha. Apparently, a ninja Clan was really protective of their own deer ; and, well, whatever. She wouldn't even try to find a logic to ninjas' way of life. She had tried unsuccessfully with wizards before, and while her snakes had countered that there was a difference between Wizards' _stupidity_ and Ninjas' _insanity,_ she had decided to spare herself the headache.

She had never been fond of deer meat anyway – especially because her father had been a _stag_ Animagus. The very idea of eating deer…

Well, in any case, there was no need for that now ; and buying groceries was a good way to discover a little part of Konoha – though she could have done without the _looks_.

At least, they weren't looking at her like she was either a Savior, or a Dark Lady In The Making. Just a very, very rich person (if she had managed to have the _Copy Nin_ as her bodyguard, she had to be very important, apparently – she personally thought that she could have done _without_ him, thank you very much), and a very beautiful one with that – hey, she had _eyes_ , she wasn't blind !

She knew she was beautiful !

(It helped that almost every male, in her world, had tried to hit on her when seeing her, even without knowing who she was, after the war. Though she was small – _Damn the bloody Dursleys_ – she had a beautiful body, and the face that went with it. Training and genetics do that for you).

Anyway, she was walking slowly, taking advantage of the fact that her status as an Hime hadn't been announced yet – in fact, there was a Council Meeting about that right now, in the Hokage Tower.

Apparently, having an Hime – or an important person indeed – suddenly settling in your village, was a very big deal. Who knew ?

That didn't stop the awed and staring looks, or the leering smirks (Ugh...), but it was better now than it would be once she was officially announced to Konoha. No doubt, the rumors would spread like fire on oil.

For now they probably thought she was an Hime (the kimono was a dead giveaway, its materials too precious to belong to a commoner) exploring Konoha, or here for a mission. Maybe she was waiting for her escort to be ready before travelling to another country... ?

Whatever they thought, they left her in peace, and that was enough for her.

She vaguely looked up, feeling more than hearing a ninja rushing by, right on the rooftops. Why did they use rooftops, anyway ? Sure, it was much quicker and easier that way ; but not only did that make them easy target, for those that could see them (even though she very much doubted they would be targets _inside Konoha_ , developing habits could get you killed), it must also damage the rooftops quickly.

Well, then again, maybe not. Maybe ninjas were not heavy at all, or maybe the rooftops had been reinforced. She would have to ask, if she ever cared to remember to do so.

A lot of ninjas were rushing by, up there, and some stayed hidden. She could feel the ANBUs that had been appointed to watch her – though why, since she was literally always followed by Kakashi, she wasn't sure – as well as some ninjas in the crowd, around her.

Hey, they did need to eat too, didn't they ?

She had to admit to herself, she wouldn't have known they were here, if she hadn't been... who she was. Not that she was flattering herself, no – she was making reference to her being Mistress of Death.

With the title came a _sensitization_ to not only souls (which was helpful to see where everyone was in a place, even those that were hidden) but also to Death in all of Her forms. And ninjas had the smell of Death clinging to their skin.

It was a given, considering what they did for a living. Even if they washed themselves after every mission, even if they used scentless soap to make the scent of blood disappear – the mark of Death still clung to their very body. They had killed, they were marked.

Their very _souls_ were marked, and Hari would always be able to feel this taint. Being attuned to souls wasn't enough – but coupled with being able to see Death's touch on killers' souls meant that she knew who the civilians were... and who they weren't.

Hari knew these things instinctively – that's how she knew where the ANBUs were in the Hokage's office, during their first meeting. That's how she knew where the shinobis and kunoichis were around her, every time. And that's how she had known that the plant _wasn't_ actually a plant. She would never have guessed, otherwise – she couldn't, for the life of her, detect what they called a _genjutsu._

She _felt_ them. Felt the death they carried around. Felt the danger, the blood, everything that made them who they were. Granted, in a Ninja Village, there was a lot of _ninjas_ , obviously ; so she was constantly receiving signals from what could only be described as her seventh sense – her sixth sense being Magic.

(Or maybe it was her first. She would rather be deprived of all her other senses than to lose her magic).

Anyway. Ignoring the world around her as best as she could, (difficult when you're paranoid and always looking around, searching for danger), she managed to buy numerous goods.

 _Vital_ ones. Soap, fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, since apparently they loved it ; these sort of things. Chocolate. One cannot live without chocolate.

"What do you like ?", she suddenly asked her silent companion.

"... Huh ?", was his intelligent answer. He looked startled at being addressed.

Did he thought she was going to ignore him ? Was that what you did when you had a shinobi bodyguard ?

Well, they were going to live together for one year – maybe more if she was accepted in the ninja forces, since it had a trial of one year too ! _Of course_ she wanted to know more about him – maybe even become friends !

She was going to live with _someone else_. In _her_ house, and someone that wasn't family. That would be a first. Hermione and Ron had always been family... up until the end of the war.

She had never done that – sharing her privacy with someone. The Dursleys didn't count, they never did ; and living in a dorm was obviously very different. And before they friendship broke, she had never _shared_ with her best friends : what had been hers had been theirs, too. At least, that's how she had felt it.

After leaving Hogwarts, she had lived alone. She was a private person, after all ; and she was even more private, now that she had been betrayed too many times. Ron and Hermione... After a few months in one of her houses (one of the most modest ones, belonging to the Potter line) they had preferred to live in their own house ; an ostentatious, pretentious manor, bought with their newly won money, after the war.

It was good, to be war heroes. For them, at least.

(The house had probably been chosen by Ron. He had always liked flaunting what he had – and for a long time, that had been his friendship with _Harriet_ – and he had always had bad taste).

(Hermione probably didn't care, as long as there was a library large enough in the house).

"I asked if there was something that you liked particularly", she asked again in an annoyed voice.

He stared at her a bit, before shrugging and going back to scanning their surroundings. He did take his job seriously, forced or not. He was too much serious for his own good, she thought. She herself wasn't _that_ bad, and she had had a whole _country_ after her head... (at least, she hoped she wasn't that bad).

"I won't eat with you".

Yeah.

No.

"You sure as hell will !", she snapped, eyes narrowed.

That startled him again, though there was puzzlement as well, now.

(Well, it wasn't easy to tell, since he had an excellent poker face – Hari would hate to ever play poker with ninjas. Maybe they weren't allowed in Casinos ? – as well as, you know, _a mask ;_ but she was cheating and using a little bit of Legilimency. She wasn't looking in his head, of course, but scanning his feelings).

(It was ever-so-helpful, when speaking to a shinobi).

(And ninjas were all about cheating anyway. She was only trying to play by their rules !).

"What ?"

How eloquent.

Then again, now that she was thinking about it, maybe he didn't know. Maybe he hadn't meant to insult her. There was nothing that indicated it in his feeling – and _of course he wouldn't know, had she suddenly become stupid ?! How could he possibly know about Wizarding traditions ?!_

She breathed deeply, calming herself.

"Where I'm from", she began, prudently keeping every hints of her real story to herself in case they were followed, or someone was eavesdropping on them – they obviously would want to know who she was, and her real past was to stay a secret, but curious ninjas and spies were prone to be listening -, "It is an insult to refuse to feed one's guest. One of our oldest traditions is that of Hospitality.".

He didn't look like he was understanding. Well, she hadn't been very clear.

"It is very disgraceful to host someone, but not feed him or her. I am your host, and I will be so for a year. Being an invited guest in someone else's house invoke a strict code of conduct that stretches back centuries. Refusing to eat with me would be an insult – saying you consider me poorly, and that you don't want to associate yourself with me – and a serious breach of that conduct. What's more, for an host to refuse to take care of his or her guest is shameful. _I_ would be ashamed of myself".

And yes, there was something like an understanding in his eye. And maybe she was exaggerating a bit – she most certainly would _not_ be ashamed of herself, thank you, she knew Pureblood traditions but certainly did _not_ live by them – but she refused to live a year with someone else, yet eat alone and basically be alone, with only a strange shadow always there, but never _there_.

It would be so awkward.

"So, what is your favorite food ?", she repeated, ignoring the amused looks and feelings of the shinobis around them – who had had no problems listening to them.

Curious little gossipers.

Kakashi was silent for a bit, studying her, before muttering under his breath.

"Miso soup with eggplants".

Hari beamed, privately wondering how the _hell_ she was going to make that.

Though she had lived in Japan for quite a bit, and had eaten about everything they had, it had always been in restaurants. She had never _cooked_ Japanese foods. Well, the basics – sushis and the likes.

But she had no idea how to make a miso soup, with eggplants of all things.

She wasn't fond of the plant. She didn't dislike it either, but there were few dishes that used it, in England.

She _was_ a good cook – a great cook, indeed. She had always liked cooking, even at the Dursleys'. Back then, she had been able to take food when cooking. She just used more ingredients than needed, and quickly eat the surplus when they weren't looking.

It was often half-cooked, but it was enough.

(They never realized she was doing it, because they wouldn't know the usual quantities used for dishes. They bought more than needed, and _Harriet_ ate the leftover).

(And when she had finally been able to eat what she had cooked herself, it had been glorious).

But everything she knew how to cook were English dishes, and French ones. Fleur had taught her the French ones. There was a lot of them – France _was_ the country of gastronomy – but it wasn't Japanese food.

No matter. He would eat occidental food – and he would _like_ it. She was quite confident in her skills.

And maybe she would buy some cooking books, and make him his miso-soup-with-eggplants dish. If he was good.

She narrowly avoided colliding in a civilian, swerving to the right, before looking for a stand selling eggplant. Damn her small stature, she couldn't see anything !

And she couldn't even use magic, since it was to be kept secret at all cost. At least, until she joined the forces, since after that ninjas were prone to discover it. What with going on missions with them, you know.

(God, it was going to be a boring year, if she didn't find anything to _do_. Then again, she had a _lot_ of books to read, and magic to master, and physical training to do ; so she very much doubted she would be _that_ bored).

 _Finally_ finding the much-searched-for eggplant, (and she had _not_ used Legilimency, you have no proof anyway, and no one could suspect anything so it was okay) and totally ignoring the snicker coming from her metaphorical shadow, she purchased five of them. She could always make a gratin with them, if it came down to that.

She then fumbled with her purse, searching for the right amount of money.

She had been given a crash course by the Hokage during their first meeting, considering that their currency was different from her own. After having paid for her admission in Konoha, she had also exchanged a bit of gold for their money.

Apparently, gold was a very rare metal to find on this planet, rarer than in her original one, where Goblins and Nifflers basically _lived_ to find some. Which coincidentally meant that its value was way higher than it had been in her old world. It also meant that she was now even richer than she had been before, if such a thing was even possible.

When she had been told the equivalent for a galleon, she almost couldn't believe it. There was no way she would be able to exchange all of her wizarding money – she very much doubted there was enough Ryos in the world for that !

Ryos, what a strange name for money. Even in Japan, it hadn't been that. That clearly was one of the differences between this world and Japan. They were, otherwise, surprisingly alike – culturally speaking.

(Then again, she supposed she couldn't judge, what with sickles, galleons, noises, or even pounds, yens, deutschmarks... At least, there was only one currency in this world, and it was the Ryos. Points for them, they had avoided the violent headaches she had suffered when learning all the equivalences in the different countries she had visited).

But she didn't say anything – it wasn't in her interest, she wasn't stingy but she had learned that money was power, and that it was better to have too much of it than not enough – and let them give her what they thought was an appropriate sum of money in exchange for a few galleons. She almost felt bad, but decided it didn't matter anyway. They wouldn't believe her – though they did seem really interested by the fact that the gold was enchanted.

It wouldn't chip, wouldn't break, and wouldn't tarnish. It was magical gold they were speaking of, treated with magic. Additionally, since the Goblin's enchantments on them had dissolved when leaving Earth (since they couldn't exist in _this_ world, no Goblins having ever been there), they now could be melted into something else, if they so desired.

Seeing her struggle with the purse, Kakashi thankfully helped her (as he had done each of the precedent times), half-gloved fingers picking the necessary amount of money and giving it to the seller.

She mumbled her thanks, taking the bag given in exchange, and went on her way.

She posed some new landmarks in some streets she had never been in, without doing any movement of course (she didn't want _someone_ to think she was doing something _suspicious_ ) before acknowledging Kakashi's restlessness, and deciding to go back home – no, not home, not yet.

Maybe one day.

She decided to go back to the house.

She would cook something simple for today, and send Kakashi to train in the garden in the meanwhile. After having been on extremely demanding missions so often, it was obvious that he needed to exert himself now that he couldn't do missions anymore – couldn't even train as long and as intensively as he wanted. His primary mission was to watch her, after all, and be with her as often as possible.

Walking slowly next to her in the streets wouldn't help him expend energy at all – he needed to train. And he couldn't do that if he had to follow her everywhere in Konoha.

The obvious solution was to let him train in the garden.

She fumbled with her bags, trying to open the gates of her garden. She couldn't use magic, since she was followed even now by ANBUs, and they hadn't been informed of her... Kekkai Genkai. Finding a stand which sell eggplants with magic was discreet, a door opening by itself or a bag suddenly becoming surprisingly light (ANBUs were trained to repere that sort of things, probably by scrutinizing muscles movements or something like that – she wasn't taking any risk, those guys were _professionals_ ) simply wasn't.

And Kakashi, that damn bastard, wasn't even trying to help her ! She was holding all the bags, and here he was – trained shinobi and all – hands in his pockets. The bags were _heavy_ , damn it all, and numerous, and she couldn't use magic to suppress their weight, or to shrink them before putting them in her pocket.

He could, at the very least, have the decency to _help_ her. But no, it was too much to ask. But he would see – oh yes, she wasn't a Marauder's child for nothing. Vengeance was best served cold.

She entered the garden, and walked briskly toward the house. It was quite a small trek – nothing like the one she had to do at her Manors when she wasn't apparating, far from it, but a bit of a walk anyway. She let Kakashi close the gates – he could at least do that.

 _Finally_ arriving at her door – she wasn't used to carrying so much without the help of magic, and she had a lot of stuff – she magically opened it, stepping inside the inviting house.

Feeling the disapprobation radiating in her back, she thought quickly about what she could have done, before rolling her eyes.

"Calm down, they haven't seen anything".

"And how would you know ?", was the drawled answer, the Jonin quickly closing the house's door behind him. His tone let her know how stupid he thought she was being, to think that ANBUs weren't able to see her. Well, he obviously didn't know about magic.

To be fair, he did know about it – she had proven its existence well enough – but he didn't know the faintest thing about what it could _do_. And who could blame him ? Hari herself thought that magic was pretty amazing every now and then, and she had known about it for 128 years already !

"Because we're behind the wards. They can't see what's happening behind them. No one can see what happens in the garden, or the house for that matter".

She sighed in satisfaction, magically floating the bags to the kitchen. She was thankful of the fact that the house already had furniture when she bought it, even if she _had_ had to repair some a bit – and for once, she was even glad to have a muggle upbringing, since she already knew what a fridge was.

She put the food in it while speaking to her metaphorical shadow.

"What do you mean ?"

"Did you really think I was sending pretty lights for fun, last week ?" she saw his half-skeptical, half-carefully-neutral look, and quickly continued. "Don't answer".

She breathed – she had _already_ explained all of this last time ! He just was skeptical, and he would have to test it before being sure she was saying the truth. Well, him training in the garden would do that, she supposed. It would serve as a test.

"I put wards. Protections. Barriers. I'm not done, there's still some I have to add – Runes, mostly, think Fuinjutsu – but for now, no one can see nor hear what's happening here, or in the garden. And no one can enter without me knowing it. Soon, when I'm done, no one with nefarious intention will be able to enter, period. Understood ?"

He didn't look like he understood, but he beamed nonetheless.

"Of course"

She didn't look convinced, but let it go.

"Well don't stay here like an idiot. Out of my kitchen ! I'm sure you have a lot of interesting things to do – doing reports, lazing around, whatever".

When he didn't looked like he wouldn't move, still beaming at her, she rolled her eyes.

"Go train in the garden, if you want. You can even test it – try calling some ninja passing by, and you'll see", she shooed him out of her kitchen, already preparing plates and utensils while talking.

She needed a bit of alone-time. She hadn't had a watcher in God knows how long, and wasn't used to having a person always hovering in her immediate vicinity. It could become quite stressful, and she just needed to be alone for a moment. Or, at least, to not have such an obvious and obnoxious guard for a bit.

"Oh, and don't be afraid to destroy the garden", she added as an afterthought. "I'll just repair it".

She turned sharply towards him, a somewhat forced smile on her lips, as she gave him a thumbs-up.

"Go wild !"

The Jonin raised a skeptical eyebrow, but did as he was told. Just as he was out in the garden, after having opened the glass veranda that was one of the kitchen's walls – it certainly helped make the kitchen sunny, though it was very bad for protection purpose, and had been, in his point of view, an enormous flaw of the house's – he quickly created a shadow clone.

The clone nodded, already knowing its orders, before disappearing in the shadows, up on the ceiling, discreetly as to not be caught by the Hime – because, for all she was from another world, she _was_ an Hime. Heiress to several very important and illustrious Families, she had revealed.

( _She_ obviously didn't understand why it was a big deal, but shinobis knew better. Money and blood were important, even in this world – though not as much for blood than it had been in _her_ world. Crazy, the lot of them).

As for the clone, well, it was obvious he didn't fancy getting poisoned. She had already managed to make him eat with her, and eat what she had prepared – ninjas don't eat what others have made, with the sole exception of restaurants held by retreated ninjas, friends ( _very good_ friends), or ninjas whose specialty was cooking. Such as, the Akimichis, for example.

Or, also, the food prepared by the ANBUs' cook. For ANBUs only. It wasn't terrible, but it had everything needed.

So for the woman to manage to make him promise to eat with her... And he _knew_ he would, because insult towards her or not, he didn't feel like refusing to do so. It felt like the right thing to do.

(When was the last time he had eaten homemade food ? Oh, he knew how to cook – but what was the point to do so, only to eat it in silence, and alone ? Food tasted like ashes, and he _was_ a good cook. So he preferred, like a lot of ninjas, to eat out – often alone, but always with others around him. Sound. Lives. Energy).

Still, he couldn't eat anything just like that. It went against every one of his instincts, even if he knew she wouldn't try to kill him. Hence the clone.

He really didn't think that she would try to poison him – she wasn't the type, somehow. She was more of a fighter than a manipulator. She would prefer weapon over poison – or, at least, would use magic. Still, it wasn't that he _didn't_ trust her, but he didn't _trust_ her.

He would be a fool, if he did.

Assured that the meal wouldn't contain poison – if she had wanted to poison them, she would have done so in the Hokage office, when offering water, but one couldn't be too cautious – he stepped in the open. Immediately, he repaired the ANBU team charged to follow Hari-Hime when she was out, in case she managed to lose him.

Somehow.

(He didn't see how that could happen, but then again, magic apparently could do everything. He would wait to see it, before accepting that).

Speaking of, the wards. Apparently, shooting colored lights _had_ a purpose. He had doubted for a bit – and had been at a loss as to what report to the Hokage.

" _Potta-san shot multiple colored beams of light, while standing in her garden. She assured me they were protecting wards. I'm, as of now, still unsure of what it was, what it did, if it even did anything_ ".

Yeah. No.

He quickly signed the correct signal to the ANBU team, waiting for the appropriate answer. He was in visible sight, so bar the so-called wards, nothing could prevent the team to see him.

Except, he received no response.

Moving a bit, silently walking until he was in the approximate center of the garden – right _in front_ of one of the ANBUs – he reiterated the signal. A simple flick of the finger, nothing obvious. But they _were_ ANBUs, and they knew where to look.

Still no answer. In fact, their eyes weren't, as far as he could tell, looking at him. They seemed to be looking at the house. _Except_ , if _he_ was standing right under their noses – or, well, at least _right in front of them_ , if not close in distance – and Hari-Hime was in the kitchen, _perfectly visible_ through the glass wall... Then they were looking at nothing.

He was quite certain nothing of interest was happening near the gates – he would know, he could perfectly _see them_ – so why would they look at them as if there was something fascinating ? Hell, they looked at the gates as if it was their _target_ – and it wasn't, it was a _gate_.

And Hari-Hime was perfectly visible from where he was, so she wasn't somehow at two places in the same time – as if _that_ was possible.

Nevermind.

Trying again, he sent a pulse of chakra around, feeling it go away towards the team before – before being stopped neatly at _something_.

Huh.

He pushed his itai-ate up, looking around with both eyes, searching for what had stopped his chakra. Indeed, there was nothing at all, not even some sort of energy. Magic was becoming more and more puzzling.

He tried again, looking intently at the wave of his chakra as it moved rapidly... but it disappeared all the same, without warning. One moment it was there, the other it had been... What ?

He wasn't sure.

It still was very interesting. Hokage-sama would be delighted at the news. Something that allowed someone to go perfectly unnoticed... And, this time, he would have something to say in his report.

Feeling like an idiot, he did a last test.

"Hey !", he shouted, jumping a bit.

Why did he jump ? He himself wasn't sure. Don't ask.

This whole week had been strange. Magical woman coming from another world, having won a war and done more than a lot of veteran ninjas... And him having to _babysit_ her.

He shuddered slightly. His instincts, well-honed, were telling him that he shouldn't let her know that he was considering his current job as _babysitting_.

Well, no reaction from the ANBUs. He would have to tell the Hokage that it wasn't useful to let a team in front of the house, since it served absolutely no purpose. He smirked softly. Squirrel and Sparrow were going to be so upset and flustered when he would tell them they had spent the time looking at nothing when he was training in the garden !

One should not underestimate the importance of teasing one's kouhais, though he would never be obvious about it. He had a reputation to maintain.

He stretched a bit. It was too late to do some _real_ training, and he didn't want to go overboard anyway, so he wasn't going to give it his all. He wanted to test something she had said.

" _I'll just repair it_ ".

Repair the garden ? How ?

Only one way to know.

 _Destroy it_.

Well, maybe not – they would be really bad, if it so happened that she, in fact, _couldn't_ repair it. He didn't fancy having to repair it himself, even if he _did_ have some experience in this.

(It may or may not come from some, utterly unjust, punitions ; delivered after he had destroyed one too many training grounds. But really, it was _training_ , they weren't expecting him to only do light training, were they ?)

So he trained like this for maybe half an hour, before being – rudely, if he did say so himself – interrupted by some nonsense shout.

" _A table !_ "

He mouthed the words silently, frowning perplexingly.

"Ata ableu ? What does that even mean ?"

Then there was the Hime's head poking out of the veranda, looking right at him with an annoyed look. Had he missed something ?

"Dinner's ready"

And oh, okay. Must have been some code. Or something like that. She must have been used to speak in code, if she was out of a war. That made him think, she had never told them how many years had passed since the end of the war.

He nodded – it explained it all – and walked toward the woman. He stopped in front of her, feeling stupidly smug as she looked over what had become the previously clean and proper garden.

Holes in the earth, traces of explosions, fallen branches scattered across the ground, one tree burning merrily in the background, and several kunais embedded in various part of the nature around. Light training.

He looked curiously at the petite woman next to him, waiting for her to react. When she didn't, except for a little smirk, he decided to speak.

"Will you repair it ?"

And yeah, there may have been a vaguely daring tone in his voice. He only received a raised eyebrow, a widened smirk, and a wave of her hand. Was that a sign for something else – wait.

What ?

The holes filled themselves and disappeared, fallen branches reattached themselves to their trees, the fire extinguished and the tree went back to its former state. Grass and earth were normal again, no signs of explosion anywhere, and his kunai were floating in front of him, neatly organized in a line. Waiting for him to take them.

He did, purely out of habit.

The garden looked as if nothing had ever happened to it.

And, okay, _that_ was impressing.

No words, no energy, nothing – and yet she did repair the damages. With a _wave of her hand_.

Huh. Magic _was_ something else.

He would definitely have something of interest to report to his Hokage, now. He looked back at the deceptively delicate woman next to him. Still her raised eyebrow. Still her annoying smirk.

Her green eyes were fascinating, though. As if the nature around them had tried to replicate this exact shade, but never quite succeeded. He had never seen such a captivating green, and he had been everywhere – on _this_ world, at least. He shook himself out of his daze.

It wouldn't do for him to stupidly stay here, gazing into her eyes, no matter how pretty they were.

(How powerful and scary and hollow and defiant and wild and fierce and -).

He raised his own eyebrow.

"Dinner, is it ?"

Her smirk became a smile, and she motioned for him to follow. Once here, he dispelled his shadow clone, not caring about the sudden puff of smoke in the kitchen. From Hari-Hime's clearly surprised expression, she hadn't known it was there. And now _he_ was surprised.

She had seemed to always know who was around her, and approximately where – yet she hadn't known about the clone ?

She _had_ known about the ANBUs in the Hokage's office, and the henge-ed spy in the room. _They_ hadn't know about him, hence it was purely logical that she _had to be_ a very good sensor. So how could it have gone past her ?

"Everything's okay ?", he asked her mildly, not planning to give her any information about the clones – if she wasn't able to feel them, then he had an advantage on her. A much-needed one, considering that she had, for all intents and purposes, a lot more of advantages on them all.

"Yeah", she nodded quickly, still sending some puzzled looks at the emplacement the clone had just vacated in a cloud of smoke. "It's just... I felt I was being watched, but I thought it was just my paranoia speaking, you know ? It wouldn't have been the first time... But I truly didn't feel whoever was there".

Then she sent him a strange, unreadable look – and somehow, it looked as if a lot depended on his answer to her question, as stupid as her question was.

"Does non-killing ninjas exist ?"

He stared at her, trying to understand her question. Really ? Non-killing ninjas ? Well, some of the genins, the recent ones, hadn't killed – yet. But every ninja had at least killed once, if they were lucky as _hell_. But killing what was they did for a living, among other things, so her question truly was stupid.

She seemed to realize that, for she frowned slightly, while the smallest blush reddened her cheeks. She sent another glance at the place his clone had occupied.

"Forget it, it was a stupid question. Whether someone kill a man or an ant, it would mark them all the same", she said, to herself more than to him.

He had no idea what she was talking about.

She busied herself placing the food on the table, deep in thought. He chose not to ask questions.

"But then... ?", she mumbled lowly, not meaning to be heard, but it wasn't hard at all for him to heard her.

"Then ?", he beamed at her, and privately admitted that it was good, somehow, to see her uncertain, for once. Even if he, himself, had no idea of what she was muttering about.

Since she had come to Konoha, even when she had just been at the gates, she had been sure of herself. She had known what was happening, she had known, roughly, what could possibly happen ; all in all she had been the one with the information about the situation. They had been the ones scrambling to follow with her, and with what she was telling them – shattering their visions of the world.

(Other worlds ? Magic, insane people, magic, travels across worlds, _magic_ ?)

She shook her head to clear it, sent him a last curious look, and shrugged. "No matter. Must not be a threat if you don't react. Come, let's eat"

And he could see a deflection when he saw one – she wasn't even _trying_ – but he decided to let it go. He could always learn more latter. Though he noted that she looked much tenser than before, now that she knew some people could spy on her without her knowing where or who they were.

He sat down slowly, trying to determine what was in his plate. There was pasta, and tomatoes, and some meat – but he had never seen anything like that before.

"What is it ?"

"Mmh ? Oh, _Spaghetti Bolognaise_ ", she smiled gently. "It's delicious, don't hesitate to add cheese".

"... Cheese ?"

"Yes, here, look", she added some to his plate without even asking him first. Rude.

" _Bon appétit_ ".

"... What ?".

Cue another roll of her pretty eyes – no, of her eyes, no adjectives.

"Itadakimasu"

"Itadakimasu", he repeated, before taking his chopsticks out of one of his special scrolls out of habit (you simply don't eat with unknown chopsticks, no ninja worth their kunai did that, it was way too easy to tamper with), awkwardly hovering them over his plate.

How was he supposed to take those long pasta with his chopsticks ? Looking up, he saw the Hime, fork in hand, looking at him fixedly. Right. He had heard of some really wealthy men eating with silvery cutlery, such as forks and knives, but it was the first time for him.

Then again, from another world or not, she _was_ an Hime.

Posing his chopstick, he beamed at her, eye closed, while taking the fork that was innocently posed just on the left of his plate. It was strange, heavier than chopsticks, but he was used to handling different weapons – a fork wasn't that different.

Truly, it looked more like a torture instrument to him – but who was he to judge ?

Putting it in his plate, he turned it as he had seen Hari-Hime do, and was rewarded with what he estimated was a correct mouthful of pasta on his fork. That would do, he decided. And he hadn't even needed to use the Sharingan – though he would have been deeply embarrassed to use it only for _that_.

He looked up again, only to see Hari still looking straight at him. What was she waiting for ? Did he have to do something ? He raised a brow questioningly, and she nodded towards his plate.

"You're not eating ?"

"You're not either", he shot back, smiling happily, head tilted on one side.

She didn't look impressed, before he saw a flash of tentative realization pass in her eyes, and she looked down at her own plate.

"Tell me how you find it", was all she said, before she began eating her own part.

Huh.

Strange. He didn't think she would understand, and certainly not that quickly. Not many did, and those who knew that he never showed his face always tried to see him without his mask, when he was eating, for example. And here was the woman, allowing him his space as if everything was perfectly normal.

Well, he supposed she had been through similar things, what with her being an icon in her other world. No doubt, she understood the value of privacy. It was nice, he inwardly admitted.

Still, he quickly put his mask down, put the pasta in his mouth, and put the mask back up ; eyeing her warily. He wouldn't put it past anyone to suddenly look up, trying to see his face. Hell, even people he considered as almost friends did it – _everyone_ did it at least once, even the Hokage.

The _Hokage_. Oh, he never would outright demand him to show his face – he would never demand something so important from him, he knew what it meant to Hatakes – but he had tried to spy him when eating, once or twice.

It was part of the game, as tiring as it was...

But she didn't.

And during the whole meal, she never once looked up. She was calmly eating her own plate, letting him do it however he liked. Strange. It was the first time he didn't have to rush in order to finish his plate (which wasn't poisoned, by the way). It would have been hard to hurry, with those long pasta. He wouldn't have liked the no doubt inevitable tomato stains all over his face.

Instead, he was able to somewhat savor this strange dish – and she had been right, cheese somehow worked well with it – all the while staring at her in case she suddenly looked up.

The silence was a bit strange, a bit tense, and a bit awkward – but what would you expect of a first meal between two perfect strangers ? Though, to be honest, he was more a stranger than she was ; since he knew what had happened to her in her world.

She didn't have that luxury. He didn't intend to rectify that.

Not for now anyway. Probably not ever.

When all was said and done, she asked a question, without looking up.

"Done ?"

"Yeah".

Only then did she look up, right in his eye.

"So ?"

"So what ?". Did he have something to say ? Kami, he would have to ask her if there was a book on her world's customs, he never knew if he was doing something bad – or if he was doing something bad _by doing nothing_.

Or saying. Whichever.

(Why did he care already ?)

But she only shot him an annoyed look – she did that a lot, he thought.

"How was it ?"

He said nothing for a few seconds, having the strange impression she meant more than just the meal. But for the life of him, he couldn't figure what. Her magic repairing the garden ? The fact that she had been right about the wards ? That she had let him eat in peace ? That the cheese was good ? That she hadn't tried to poison him ? The whole day, maybe ?

Well, the answer to all of those questions could be the same.

"It was good".

And he was rewarded by an honest, bright, beaming smile.

Huh.

There was a strange feeling in his body. Too much unspent energy and adrenaline, probably. He needed to train more. But that was for later.

Right now, he watched with undisguised fascination as the plates and cutlery floated in the air, straight to the sink, and began to _wash themselves_. Now _that_ was handy ! It was as if they were dancing, hovering way above the ground, and a sponge washed them one after the other when they came upon the sink.

Water flowed on its own, soap bubbled merrily, and all in all in was a very pleasant affair – and how very much useful ! He knew a lot of kunoichis, and shinobis too for that matter, who would love to be able to do that.

He wouldn't admit it out loud, but magic _was_ amazing...

Well, he had seen nothing that proved it was useful in _battle_ , but since she _had_ won a war... Huh, you get it.

He stayed a bit in the kitchen, ignoring Hari's small, amused laugh when she walked past him, to go into the living room.

Only after did he join her on the couch in front of the one she was sitting in, reading peacefully a _book_. While not rare, ninjas preferred scrolls.

And it was the first time he was seeing such a book – heavy, ancient, and large.

Trying to peek a bit, by passing behind her swiftly before going to sit on the sofa in front of her, only separated by a small, low coffee table, he was dumbfounded. Strange little squiggles, that looked _nothing_ like any katakana, kanji, or hiragana he knew of. It was the first time he ever saw such things – what _had_ to be a written language, since the Hime was actually reading it. There was also a certain sense, pattern, to the strange drawings on the page – it hadn't been put randomly together. Which meant it was from her other world – but _who_ invented a whole new alphabet only for a code ?!

It never came to his mind that it wasn't a code, but rather an actual language. Since everyone in the Elemental Nations spoke the same language, though admittedly with some differences depending on the region ; he didn't realize that some worlds had different languages, coming from different cultures, with their own alphabets for some.

Well, in any case, he couldn't read this incomprehensible gibberish. That was a bit problematic, since he didn't know what the book was about (she had told him it was about wards, but what that meant exactly, and if she was saying the truth, he knew not), and it was the sort of things he needed to discover for his Hokage. He didn't think it was the case, but maybe the book was dangerous.

It sounded preposterous, and even ridiculous – that she would simply sit down after a good meal to read a dangerous book on how to kill one's enemies – but so was the idea of _space within space_ , also known as 'Kami-there's-so-much-place-in-this-trunk-how-is-that-even-possible-where's-the-trick'. Or, more simply, the idea of _someone coming from Another World_ , also known as 'What-the-fuck'.

And it wasn't as if he could just _ask_ – but maybe he could try and pry some information from her. He was quite confident in his interrogation skills (even without torture), and from what he had gathered – from what they had all gathered – in her explanations, during the first day of the Hime in Konoha... her people weren't a warrior nation.

Not like ninjas were.

Meaning, she had not been trained to conceal and hide information, not to the point where she would resist his skills.

Well, it couldn't hurt to try, could it ?

"What is this ?", he drawled lazily, the picture of boredom.

His arms were displayed on the couch's back, on each side of himself, and his legs were extended in front of him. He didn't put his feet on the coffee table that separated their two couches – he wasn't that rude, or at ease – but he certainly looked as if all was well in his world ; and not at all as if he was trying to extract informations.

"A book on wards", came the surprisingly easy response. Well, that was a first... But it wasn't very informative. Maybe more precise, perhaps.

"Yeah, but what is it written in ?"

She looked up with surprised eyes, before remembering that here, they only knew Japanese. Oh, Kakashi was practically vibrating with curiosity !

Well, to be honest, _no_ , he wasn't ; he was perfectly calm in appearance. But his _emotions_ were pouring out of him, whether he wanted it or not. She would really have to tone down her passive Legilimency, she realized.

Since she had learned it, she had always let it passively on – not actively looking in anybody's head, but feeling the emotions of people around her. It certainly helped avoid a lot of problems, when you can feel when someone's ready to do something stupid.

She had endeavored to avoid those persons _like Hell_. She had had enough problems for a lifetime, thank you. And coming here in the Ninja World had _nothing_ to do with a problem – since it was the first time _she_ went looking for adventure, and not the other way around.

She could live with that, as long as it was her own choices.

"Russian. They're pretty good with wards, though not to the level of the Incas. But I'll read those later".

"Ruchian ?", mouthed Kakashi, trying to make sense of the world.

No such luck.

Thankfully, Hari seemed to see his incomprehension.

"It's a language. On this world you all speak Japanese, but on my old world, there's a lot of different languages, with even different alphabets sometimes".

She snapped her fingers (and he noted that she didn't use a wand, like she had when making glass and water appear, in the Hokage's office. Meaning, she didn't _need_ one. Then why did she use one for her Unbreakable Vow ? And for putting her wards ? He ignored the question for now, keeping it in a corner of his head), and a book came flying out of an open trunk, inconspicuously posed next to the couch.

He looked at the trunk suspiciously. He _knew_ how much space was available inside it... and the incongruous idea of having to check inside every trunk he would see from now on crossed his mind. He sighed – great, he had managed to become even more paranoid than before.

"Come here", she asked, waving him over distractedly with one hand, and putting her first book on the coffee table with the other. She didn't close it – obviously intending to resume its lecture later.

He sat down next to her, awkwardly (that was the closest he had ever been to someone in a long time, out of A- and S- rank assassination missions, or simply one-night stands) and very unsure of himself. He was tense, expecting an attack anytime now – well, his body was expecting one, though his mind knew _logically_ that there was no risk there.

He knew it, could _feel_ it, but stayed on guard nevertheless.

Then she opened the still floating book, and showed him its contents.

Strange little drawings. What _was_ that ? Another code – no, language ? It did look different than whatever 'Ruchian' was.

"That's English. Roman alphabet", she explained, turning several pages. "Now that's French, same alphabet, but different words, pronunciation, syntax, everything. The alphabet's the same, but save for some words, that's all they have in common".

She turned several other pages, with strange inky designs. He interrupted her before she could say more.

"I'm sorry, but what's this book ?"

"Hmm ? Oh, it's just a book gathering almost every language in the world – my world, I mean".

' _Just_ ', he thought faintly. ' _Just_ '. From the book's thickness, he guessed that there was _a lot_ of different languages – meaning, from what she had said, a lot of different cultures. He couldn't even imagine such a world.

It had to be excruciatingly difficult, complex, with a lot of misunderstandings between countries. And everyone knew everyone's language. How could they all live together ?

Here they all had only one language, one culture – but they fought plenty still ! He couldn't imagine what this world was like.

Yet this book offered a lot of interesting possibilities. Sure, they would have to actually _learn_ the languages, but once it was done, they would have a code without precedent – one with a completely different alphabet, one no enemy would ever be able to decipher, since it had absolutely _no link_ whatsoever with their own language.

"Go on", he invited, looking at the book with renewed interest.

"Er... Yes, as I was saying", was all that Hari said, though she did shoot him a odd look. "This one's Arabic. Then there's Hebrew, Italian, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, German. Then there are different African dialects, since Africa is fractioned into a lot of countries. Of course, there are Latin and Greek, two very important languages to know for wizards, even though they're technically dead languages for non-magical people. And hieroglyphs, old Egyptian. There's a lot more, but those are the main languages. Then there's different Runic alphabets, each country generally has its own, in addition of their 'normal' language, if you will. And the magical languages - Gobbledegook, Parseltongue – though that one, I doubt anyone in this world will be able to learn it, it's a gift. You have it or not, that's all ; but also Merspeak, the Mermen's language, and a lot more".

Kakashi perked up at 'Chinese' and 'Japanese', since he thought he had recognized some of the letters – he was pretty sure he had understood some of the words, though some didn't make sense at all for the 'Chinese', but he had definitely recognized the 'Japanese' – hell, it was his Japanese ! – but decided that would have to wait for later.

The others... the others he wanted to ignore for a bit longer ( _Mermen ?!_ )

"That's... a lot..."

"Yes, I guess we _do_ have a lot of languages", she chuckled gently. "And though almost everyone know at least two or three languages, few are the people who bother to learn them all".

"I – how many do you know ?", he was pretty curious as to the answer.

She didn't look like an academic person, rather a fighter – a woman of action and danger. But she did have a soft, calm vibe to her. One that spoke of calm activities, peaceful tendencies. One that could very well go with the Hime calmly curled on a couch, fireplace warmly lightening the place with orange hues, while snow softly fell outside ; and those green eyes would be looking down at an old, withered book with wonder and interest.

He vaguely wondered why his mind supplied such an image, but let it go.

"Me ?", and Hari actually looked surprised, before looking back down at the book, smiling. And though it was an honest and gentle smile – the first one she had since he had met her that wasn't bitter – he couldn't help but see the hidden pain and loneliness in it. "I know them all".

And he didn't say anything – didn't ask how it was that she did ; why she had absorbed herself in studies instead of fun and friends ; why she had had so much time on her hands, and nothing else to do ; why she looked sad at the simple fact that she had learned all of those languages, instead of – .

He didn't say anything, because though as a ninja he saw a lot more than any other person, as a ninja, he also knew when to say nothing.

* * *

Hari Potta went down the stairs, feeling the smooth wood under her shoeless feet – she was in her own house, she could do as she wanted – and hearing it creak ever so slightly under her weight. The air was cool against her skin (she liked to sleep in the warmth, probably came from her serpent animagus, and her Phoenix one too, come to think of it – so it meant heating charms on her sheets, and quite the temperature shock once she was out of bed), but not unwelcome.

It helped her to wake up.

5 a.m was way too early to be awake, but she didn't think she could go back to sleep. She had spent some hours dozing off, turning in her bed, unable to really fall into Morpheus' arms.

It was not that she was tired – truth be told, she felt quite rested. Her preparations for coming to the Elemental Nations had taken a lot out of her, with intense physical training, magical training, preparing the Ritual, organizing her possessions, and the overall stress that came from preparing herself to step into the unknown – maybe trading one Hell for another. And the fact that she had had to live through her memories again – something she had previously promised herself, once her Occlumency had finally been mastered and perfected, never to do again – to explain her situation to the Hokage had been quite trying as well.

All in all, it had been some very difficult times for her, but she found that such was not the case anymore.

No, ever since she had come to the Elemental Nations, she had had the opportunity to unwind a bit. And while she wasn't completely at ease, or at home ; she still felt reasonably relaxed for having spent only one whole week in Konoha – her second week, all in all, in this world.

She didn't trust any of them, not yet, but she was calm around Kakashi, and no one could enter her home without her knowing so – and she didn't even have to fear for her life, since she couldn't lose it... so that took a lot of stress out of her.

She could have felt better, and she had no doubt that she would, in time... once she was accustomed to her new life.

Everything was still so new. That was why she was still wary and nervous, and why she felt a bit out of it. Hell, the house itself was still very, very new (she felt more at home in her _tents_ )... but it was coming around.

She was determined to make it work.

She softly padded into the kitchen, decades of life having made her as silent as one could be without magic or ninja training, and stopped. Looking through the glass wall, she could see Kakashi standing just on the other side, back to her, apparently taking a break from his training. Damn, the man was crazy to be up as early as it was ! He had to have been at it since a few moments already, considering he was sweating up and that wouldn't be the case if he had just begun. But ninjas were crazy, she knew that...

For all that she could and _would_ go up as early as possible if needed, and be perfectly wide-awake at that ; she admitted to herself that she would _never_ do it if she didn't _have_ to do it. She really liked sleeping in if she could. She hadn't had many opportunities to do it until she became immortal, and then it had somehow lost of its appeal. She wasn't sure why... She just didn't feel like it anymore. Maybe when you have all the time in the world, literally, wasting it away snuggling in bed was somehow uninteresting.

She had only wanted to travel, and discover new places, or forgotten ones, and learn magic, and _do_ something with her... life. Maybe it was to prove herself that she was still _alive_ , that being immortal didn't mean that she would calcify and watch Time pass by, without feeling concerned by it, without wanting to do anything. So she had done everything she wanted, everything she could think of, taking few pauses here and there when she felt like it.

(Or maybe it was because she had just ended the war and could do what she _wanted_ , for once ; and was too jittery to relax at home with a good book. She wouldn't have been able to appreciate it, and she still couldn't do it now, not really – but at Hogwarts', before everything had really gone to shit, she had loved to curl up in an armchair near the fireplaces in the Common Room, and read for a bit, at night, alone and in silence).

(Or maybe it was all of that, together).

Whatever the reason, she was up earlier than she would have, had she had the choice. But she was still getting used to being here, in this world and in this house, so sleep had eluded her. She hadn't felt like staying in bed either – too many thoughts, not enough noise to show life, and she had never really liked music of any kind and thus couldn't put some – so down she had gone, thinking she would make some coffee then read a bit on wards.

She wanted to put the best wards she could, after all. She was determined to have the single most protected house in this _world_. But Kakashi was out there, training (he was always up before her, but it was the first time she realized how early he awoke). And she, herself, was quite behind her planning in physical training.

She hadn't trained physically since coming to the Elemental Nations, in fact. Hey, she had been busy discovering a new world, avidly looking the differences and similarities she could see ; busy assimilating that she had _done it_ , that she had left her old world behind _forever_ , that she was _free of them_ ; busy with tracking Orochimaru down, taking care of him, and having some _words_ with Manda ; busy reading wards books, because while she was a Ward Mistress, some major wards in her old world were totally useless in this one, which allowed her to put some new, rarer ones, without weakening the global structure, and it was very interesting and took a lot of time...

Busy.

So yes, training physically hadn't been her priority, and no one could blame her. Her situation was quite unique, in every way, and she would hurt the first person that tried to judge or blame her.

Manually preparing coffee using her brand-new machine (it took longer that way, but tasted a lot better), she waited for it to be ready, studying Kakashi in the meantime. He didn't look like he knew she was there, but she couldn't be sure. Once the coffee was ready, she poured herself a cup, and joined the Jonin outside.

From his lack of reaction, she would say that he had known she had been standing in the kitchen in the past twenty minutes or so ; but he was a ninja and that meant he could be simply hiding his surprise. She was trying to reign in her Legilimency, because it could be quite overwhelming when living in a Village as busy as Konoha was, but upon concentrating she could still feel others' emotions. And Kakashi's distinctly lacked any surprise.

So he had known, then.

She took a sip, taking in the slowly lightening sky, the still cold and humid air, the destroyed garden. Kakashi had made good use of her permission to train in it, no matter the mess he made ; and she had repaired it every day so far. It wasn't a bother, of course not. She was even a bit satisfied and, dare she say it, smug, when feeling his reluctant awe when she was using her magic.

She distantly thought that it had been a great idea to magically silence the bedrooms – he couldn't hear what was happening in hers, she couldn't hear what was happening in his, and they both couldn't hear what was happening outside of their door... though Kakashi apparently was disturbed by that fact and slept with the door the slightest bit open, the silencing ward coming into effect only when the door was completely closed.

She understood, of course. She too would feel uneasy if she had to sleep in absolute silence, unable to tell if someone was approaching her door in the night. She, herself, had no problem in this situation now, because the basic wards she had put around her house would wake her up immediately should someone cross them uninvited, and she had absolute faith in her own magic. It had never failed her.

Kakashi didn't have this faith. For him, the silence surrounding him when the door was closed was a liability and a danger. Hence the fact that he never closed his door, thus nullifying the silencing ward.

It had still prevented her from being awoken at ungodly hours (as she would have been today, for example, if not for the silencing ward), or had prevented Kakashi from hearing her nightmares. She was quiet during those – had learned not to make a sound, even asleep and in distress – but she knew he would hear her all the same if both their doors were open. She didn't want that.

She had only had one nightmare ever since coming to Konoha, but she guessed it was because she was settling in, and a lot was happening at the same time. She had no doubt the nightmares would come back with time. They always did.

"Down here for some training ?", Kakashi interrupted her musings.

She almost startled, so lost in her thoughts as she was, but managed to hide her reaction by taking another sip of her cooling coffee. A quick heating charm corrected that flaw.

She had a feeling that he wasn't fooled.

"Training ?", she asked dumbly – but for her defense, she was just waking up. There was no emergency, she was thus allowed to take her time.

"Yes", he confirmed without even looking down at her, lone eye still looking over the garden. "If you want to become a ninja in a year's time, then you will have to be in the expected physical condition".

And, well. Yes. She didn't feel like it, not really, but then again she wasn't feeling like much today. So, why not ?

"Hmm...", she said nothing, breathing in her coffee's aroma, eyes closing by a strange habit, before answering reluctantly. "I guess I will do some. I do need it, after all... after I'm done with my coffee. And I need to eat a bit".

Silence fell once she was done, and Kakashi let her drink her coffee slowly, as slowly as she could, dragging the moment. She side-eyed him.

"Have you eaten ?"

"Not yet", he hummed softly, still not looking at her.

She found that she wasn't annoyed by that. She herself was pretty fine looking ahead at nothing, too. Even destroyed as it was, it was a beautiful garden. Hari had never seen plants as luxurious as those in Fire Country were. There was something with the huge trees surrounding the Village...

Once the cup was almost empty, she sighed, resigning herself to her fate. But before that...

"Come, then", she said, waving to him to follow her, as she came back into the kitchen. "I'll cook a quick breakfast before I get to it, and you get _back_ to it".

He followed wordlessly, eye sharply following her every movement, face blank. Honestly, she was surprised that he had accepted to eat what she was cooking, but she guessed that he simply didn't want to be suspicious of her every action. She was here to last, if everything went good, and him endlessly doubting her would not do for a sane working relationship... especially if they were to live together for a whole year – maybe more. She wasn't sure about the last part.

After the year of trial as a civilian, she would be allowed to pass the test to become a kunoichi – and would then have to undertake _another_ year of trial as a ninja. Would he still be the one watching her ? Would she still be watched, at all ? Surely they would have a small amount of trust in her by that time. Plus, Kakashi was too good a ninja to be kept away from real missions too long, in these precarious times for Konoha.

Still, right now, he had to do some leap of faith, just like she had done when sharing her past. She could have been much more evasive, could have kept a lot more secrets, or memories... as long as she didn't lie, then the Unbreakable Vow wouldn't have reacted. But each party keeping to itself wouldn't have amounted to anything, so she took the risk, and it appeared that the silver-haired ninja was doing the same.

To be fair, if she had wanted to kill him, then she would have had a lot of occasions already, and she wouldn't have needed to create such a past for herself. That is, if she had lied. Considering that she had done nothing when she could have killed the Hokage himself, or at least tried (you can't come much closer to kill the man than when you're in his own office, no matter how many ANBUs are here as well – not if you're prepared), then chances were low that she would try anything now.

As such, there was no real risk to eat what she cooked, but the Jonin could have chosen to be a bastard about it, and refrain. Maybe she ought to change the nickname she had given him...

She realized that it would be the first time she would cook breakfast for him. Usually, he was always up before her, and she had always thought that he had already eaten – he never said anything when she was eating herself. So she didn't know what he liked in the morning – did he even drink coffee ?

That question was answered when the man poured himself a cup of coffee from the machine she had done before going out to see him, with just a small questioning look in her direction to make sure it was alright. She had of course nodded. It was still hot – preserving charms were something she did without even thinking about it anymore. That left the question of the food.

"Do you mind toasts and marmalade ? I can make some croissants too", she offered, looking curiously at the tall man in her kitchen.

She had always known that she wasn't particularly tall, but standing near the man really shoved that fact in her face.

"That's what you eat for breakfast ?", asked Kakashi, a puzzled look in his eye, before adding. "What's a croissant ?"

And, right. Japanese didn't eat English breakfast. Very true. But she had never liked Japanese breakfasts, or Chinese's, for that matter. She liked Occidental breakfasts, and that was that.

"Yes, but I guess I can try to cook something else for you...", she tried awkwardly, realizing that she maybe should have learned to cook Japanese dishes, if she was to blend in the Elemental Nations. Sadly, the thought hadn't come to her. Hindsight... Then she hopefully added. "But maybe you could try ?"

Kakashi hesitated for so short a moment Hari didn't even seen it, before shrugging in acceptation. They would get nowhere if he didn't show small moments of trust, or if he kept refusing everything she proposed.

Half-an-hour later, Kakashi decided that he most definitely _didn't_ regret his choice, and that he never wanted to go through a breakfast without one of those croissants if he could help it. There were _delicious_.

He may have eaten more of them than was strictly reasonable, but thought that it was quite alright. He was going to train right after, after all, and ninjas had extremely high metabolisms anyway. There was no risk of him ever going _fat_ , no matter what all those would-be kunoichi thought to justify their dieting, and he could do with a bit more food in any case. He wasn't underfed – he knew the importance of a good diet and would never endanger his own performance – but he had kept his food intakes on a strictly necessary amount. Never more – he never saw the point.

He ate to live and do missions, not because he liked it or was hungry. It was a necessity. He had never felt the need to eat something _because_ he wanted to eat it – though he did sometimes make an exception for miso soup with eggplants. Exceptions should always be done for that dish.

But now that they had both finished – no matter how much the Hime had tried to slow the whole process – they could go to what was, in Kakashi's humble opinion, the best part : the training.

"Let's train", he chirped brightly, internally vaguely amused at the Hime's obvious reluctance.

She obviously wasn't a fan of physical training, though he didn't think she was one to slack off either.

She groaned, but did follow him out. He watched with disguised fascination as her clothes changed with a snap of her fingers, becoming something more adequate for training : sport shorts and a tank top. Strange shoes covered her previously naked feet, looking nothing like the sandals ninjas used, and she had put her hair up in a tail. He noted the numerous scars on her arms, not as much as a ninja would have, but a lot more than civilians. There was some on her legs, too, though they were very subtle, and very few. He had a feeling there was more of them, that he couldn't see because of the clothes.

"What do you usually do ?", he asked, surprised to find himself actually curious.

Did the people in that other world train differently ? Did they have their own techniques ?

"Well, first of all, please remember that no one in my old world ever trained to the extent that you do – not physically at the very least", she huffed, obviously prepared to him not being impressed by her training regime. "Our bodies are much more limited in their strength – your chakra strengthen your bodies, but there is none of that in my old world, not even in the Magical one".

Kakashi tilted his head on the side, slightly, considering what that meant. He decided that the equivalent were the Samourais, who fought with their bodies and not with chakra. A very skilled ninja could kill a hundred samourais without even trying – they were slow and their reflexes weren't that good, compared to a ninja's speed. Chakra did make them much stronger in every aspect compared to a samourai.

Which meant that everyone in her old world – as she constantly referred to it – was... _weak_.

Well, he corrected himself, they were _physically_ weak. Some of them apparently had magic, and that must mean that they were stronger than the others – even if not physically. But considering that the Hime had a sort of protection around herself that stopped everyone and everything from entering (though he wanted to test if breathable poisons would pass... but that was for another time), and that she had done something that had somehow petrified the mole (and the ramification implied with having a mole in the Hokage's office wasn't something he wanted to think about _now_ – still, they had to ask her to stop whatever she had done to the spy, for nothing they had done had been successful in awakening the man) _…_ Considering all of that, she wasn't defenseless.

No matter how much weaker than him she was physically. What good his strength would be if he couldn't even touch her ? But he would watch her magical training later. For now, he wanted to see how she trained physically.

"Go on", he encouraged.

She shrugged, looking around in the garden – that had already been repaired, he noted.

"I run for as long as I can, alternating between points of speed and endurance. I do twenty push-ups or so, then some sits up, and I usually do some yoga, since it's good for the flexibility... I'm not really focused on strength, more on speed and flexibility. It's what will work better with me", she explained, and he had to agree with her.

She didn't have what it takes to be a heavy hitter.

"Show me", he asked, and she shot him a disgruntled glare.

"I know that it's probably pitiful compared to what you do – Hell, even compared to what your _genins_ do – but keep in mind that it's quite the performance for one such as me", she said primly, doing stretches.

Points for her, thought Kakashi. At least she knew what she was doing.

"I don't need to have a lot of strength. I need endurance, speed and flexibility, but I don't really need to learn what you call Taijutsu – not if I can keep everyone away from me with magic".

"What happens when you have exhausted your magic ?", he wondered out loud.

From her explanations the first day, in the Hokage's office, Magic was relatively similar to Chakra, bar the obvious differences. They were both energies. But he didn't think that... Wizards, had a limitless core of Magic – somehow, that looked way too easy. And she wouldn't have needed to train, and they wouldn't have needed a school for their children : if Magic had been limitless, then the... _wizards_ (it was still weird for him to think that they weren't a fairy tale) would have learned it more easily, and with their own families.

Plus, every energy had a limit. That was the way of life.

(At least, he hoped it was, even in that other world).

But Hari-Hime gave him an amused glance.

"That is a situation that will never happen", she said, a tad smugly. "I have more magic than everyone else in my old world, and then some. My case is somewhat of a... particularity".

She frowned, carefully warming her wrists and ankles.

"Let's just say that I have a lot of magic at my disposal, and that spells and the likes do not take a lot out of me. I stand by my point : me exhausting my magic will never happen".

Okay, it was clear that she didn't want to talk about that, and wasn't about to be forthcoming with information. That was okay. That was why Kakashi was here, after all : to discover as much as he could on the Hime and her magic. That wasn't going to happen in a day – they had lived together for a week only. He had time.

He had a whole year... minus a week.

Plenty of time.

"Why do you train, then ?", he asked, for if she only needed her magic, then she didn't need to train her body.

"First of all, doing magic takes a toll on the body. It's like a strenuous activity – magic is a muscle. The more of it you have, the easier using it is, but doing magic is tiring nonetheless", she explained slowly. It was as if she was searching her words – as if she had never had to explain that to anyone.

Considering that that must be general knowledge, that wouldn't surprise Kakashi.

"Then it is always a good idea to be fit. There are very few fat wizards – fewer than you may think, and all of them have low magical cores – so everyone is more or less in a good physical condition. Doing magic is similar to exercising. So to be in a better condition than them, to be faster and stronger than them, is quite the advantage, I've found, especially in a war".

Ah, yes. Of course she would want to have more stamina than others – especially enemies.

But that gave him a new question.

"If you admit that you are slow, compared to us ; and that you will not progress, then how are you going to use magic against ninjas ? You can protect yourself, as you have showed us, but what about attack ?"

Not that having her as protection wouldn't be enough – it would be very good, in fact, few ninjas had impenetrable defenses, and they could take care of the offence while she had their backs – but he would like to know what she had to say to that. How could she attack if everyone else was faster than her ? Would she even be able to see her targets ?

She began to jog lightly around the garden, following the line of trees that marked the end of her property. He followed easily, pushing chakra in his weight seals so that the workout would actually be of some interest for him.

"I can attack with magic as well – I will have to show you, one day – and my magic is way faster than I am. There is no problem about that", she affirmed easily, dismissing his half-hearted concern.

"You shouldn't speak when running", he reproached mildly.

That wasn't good for the body, since it messed with the respiration. Civilians were already slow, (though she was faster than them, having managed to keep a good rhythm over the roofs) but if they talked when running, then their stamina diminished by half. Never a good idea.

"I'm just warming up", the Hime reassured lightly. "When I'm training, I won't speak... I'll be too busy gasping for breath"

She smirked at her own joke, even if it was at her own expense. At least, she wasn't overestimating herself, he guessed. That was a flaw a lot of Ninjas shared – and let's not even talk about civilians.

"How do you train ?", she asked him, looking at him at the corner of her eyes, but never stopping her light jogging. "Physically speaking, I mean".

He smiled sweetly – not that she could see it – but turned his by now famous upturned U-eye smile toward her.

"What do you say you try and keep up with me ?", he dared.

If he had read her right, she was proud. She wasn't the type to step down, give up, or avoid a fight. She was the kind of person that went head first into battle, and had learned cunning and planning only because she had been forced to admit that it saved her life. Prudence, for her, had come from experience, not by nature.

Which meant that she wouldn't back down, and instead would try to do as he did – pushing her own limits doing so. He wanted to see how far she could go, even in impossible tasks, against impossible odds, when there was no way for her to win. He wasn't stupid, knew she had trained and could probably handle herself... against genins.

But her body wasn't trained for heavy, physical fights. She was silent – disturbingly so, even for ninjas – but fragile. Not frail, her body was fit... for a civilian, that is. But it wasn't strenghtened by chakra. Its possibilities were much more limited. So he wanted to see how far she could push herself.

"You're on", she simply smirked at him, toothily – and he saw the defeat in her eyes before they had even began, but also a defiant light, a stubborn spark, and her whole posture showed her ready to fight.

He had to stop himself from smiling – a small, true smile – and only nodded back at her.

They would see.

Two hours later, the sun was shining brightly in the blue sky – the bluest sky Hari had ever seen – and it was a surprisingly warm and sunny for a day of November. Truly, everything was peaceful, and many a civilian were enjoying themselves.

Hari Potta would have done the same. She would have, had the circumstances been different.

As it was, she didn't see the sky, never realized that she had never seen that particular shade of blue before – at least, not when looking up at the sky. She didn't hear the birds, didn't feel the warmth of the sunrays gently caressing her skin.

No, after two hours, Hari Potta reluctantly crawled onto her terrace, limbs trembling madly, heaving gasps, before sprawling on the hard wood and deciding to not move until such a time she didn't feel like she was dying.

That she had been able to go up until the terrace at all was a small miracle in and of itself. She felt no one could ask more of her, especially not now, not today, and maybe not all week. She reasonably believed that she had done enough for... let's say, a month. Doing more would be unneeded, insane, and useless. No, the wood was quite comfortable, and her body was rebelling against her anyway (that ungrateful body of hers ! Sure, it had suffered through great difficulties ever since her birth, but come on – she had never done anything to harm it ! On the contrary, she had done her best to protect it, against herculean odds ! Couldn't it be a bit more grateful, and back her up in this difficult times ?), and she felt like a nap.

A shadow appeared above her, and she would have growled had she had any breath to spare. As it was, she didn't even whine – all her energy concentrated on trying to send much needed oxygen to her deprived, screaming lungs.

She privately decided there and then (for the thousandth time since the beginning of the training) that she would never, _ever_ , _ever_ train with Kakashi, _ever again_. Then thinking became a bit too hard, and she closed her eyes and let her brain think whatever it wanted to think about.

That is to say, cold water. She could kill for some cold water right about now. And yes, she was a witch, but her entire body was exhausted (more exhausted than she had thought possible), and the simple _idea_ of using her magic right now was even more exhausting, if such a thing was possible.

Wait lying on the floor it was.

She thought she heard a voice, but her blood rushing through her veins made it quite difficult to hear anything. She had known that Ninjas took physical training to a whole new level, had known that she wouldn't be able to best Kakashi – she had _known_ that.

But damn, that was simply ridiculous.

And now she wanted a swimming pool full of frozen water, so that she could submerge her burning body in it, and drink as much as she wanted while she was at it. But she didn't want to move – she never wanted to move again. She briefly considered turning herself into a small, nice little flower, so that she was sure she would never have to suffer through this again ; but decided it was not worth the expense of energy.

Sandaled feet appeared in the corner of her vision, a shadow looming over her. Even turning her eyes in his direction seemed too exhausting a task, so she kept on looking blankly at the sky, grateful that the sun was not yet at its peak, and was thus unable to blind her. Turning her head away would have been a bother.

That thrice-damned _bastard_ , Kakashi, crouched next to her, still speaking nonsense. Well, what sounded like nonsense to her, at least. She was sure that he was pronouncing actual words, but all her remaining energy was focused on _breathing_ , and so she didn't have time to spare to translate those sounds into actual words.

A few minutes later, and the dark spots dancing in her vision disappeared, the blood pounding in her ears tuned down to an acceptable level, and her breath slowed. Also, her heart went back to an appropriate rhythm, so all in all she decided she was in a better state. She willed a tall glass of water to appear next to her head, a straw conveniently waiting in front of her lips. She would have to stop breathing for a few seconds the time to aspire water, so she dedicated all of her attention to this difficult task.

She didn't want to stop breathing.

Still, she succeeded, and once the glass was empty, she felt much better. Good enough to understand what that… that insufferable _prat_ was telling her, at least.

"- and of course you need to have a good grasp on Raiton-natured chakra, for it to work, and a good chakra-control, as well as large reserves –"

What was he babbling on about ?, she wondered grimly, scowling weakly in his direction.

"Ah, you're back ?", he had the nerve to smile, as if everything was perfectly fine.

She decided that _that_ didn't deserve an answer.

"What were you saying ?", she panted, going back to stare at the blue sky.

She still was a bit surprised at the purity of the sky, here. She had never realized how… how polluted, the sky had been in her old world. Here, nothing obscured it, and there was no pollution in the air. The intensity of the blue was breathtaking – she had never seen a sky this blue before.

She realized she was making eulogies to a sky, and firmly told herself to stop.

"I was explaining you how to make my signature jutsu", mildly explained the Jonin, still crouched on the ball of his feet.

Hari thought about that for a few seconds, before scowling again.

"Why would you do that ?", she snapped – her mood wasn't the best – still intent on imitating a starfish on the wood of her terrace. "I don't have chakra".

"So what ?", he calmly asked, humming softly under his breath and his mask. The end result was quite muffled.

"So I don't care about how a jutsu is done, since I can't do any", she groused, inwardly cheering when she managed to raise a few fingers without being in pain.

"Yes, I know", he nodded sagely. "If you could, I wouldn't have told you how to do Raikiri".

Right. Right – she took everything good thing she had ever thought about him back.

"You", she said with finality, doing the extra-effort of letting her head fall on the side so that she could look at him, "are a bastard. I hope you know that".

The sudden beaming he did let her believe that he did know, in fact, that he was one.

"Well, you did good", he changed the subject, finally coming to the reason why he had baited her in the first time. "You did better than I expected, and though you're not chunin level, you're mid-genin, I think".

She bravely fought the urge to cry – _children_ were better and stronger than her, in this world ! If she didn't have her magic, she would be downed by a mere child before even blinking ! That… did no good to her ego. Still, she had her magic, so she fiercely remembered herself that she was _so much stronger_ than anyone on this planet, it wasn't even funny.

That did some good.

"That good enough ?", she asked him, sighing softly when feeling the wind cooling down her sweaty skin. "For the ninja test ?"

Kakashi made a sound at hearing the mandatory examen to integrate the Ninja Corps being called 'the ninja test', but didn't comment. He simply answered her question – which was good, since she didn't feel like bantering right now.

She filled her glass with cold water again, and sipped leisurely from the straw.

"Yeah, it should", he hummed, stopping his crouched position and instead sitting on the floor. He deftly stole her drink, letting her with a useless straw hanging from her lips, and drank it _through_ his mask.

That man was so weird, she thought, frowning at him. He had stolen her water. _Bastard_.

"You probably will never make Jonin, but Tokubetsu Jonin is assured", he chirped happily, putting the empty glass down.

Resolutely telling herself that she _wouldn't_ transform him into some fish so that he could spend days drinking water, since he so loved stealing other people's precious drink ; she softened her scowling and asked what was the difference between the two ranks. Eloquently.

"What's that ?"

"Hmm ?", Kakashi tried to look innocent, but she wasn't fooled.

She glared at him, and usually her glares were terrifying indeed – something to do, she had been told, with how her eyes gained an eerie green glow – but right now she had the feeling that he saw her as as menacing as a kitten was. Which admittedly wasn't much.

"Don't mess with me", she threatened, still panting ever-so-softly. "I will turn your precious hair bright pink and never turn it back".

He glowered at her, but did answer, so that was a win.

"Roughly, Jonins are good at everything, Tokubetsu are specialized", he sighed, leaning back and supporting himself on his hands, so that he could watch the puffy white clouds floating in the sky.

She blinked at him.

"Right. Specialized ?"

He sighed again, and let his head roll towards her so that he could give her an annoyed look. Bastard.

"Yes, specialize", he drawled. "I'm a Jonin, I'm good at everything. You'll probably be a Tokubetsu, meaning you will be good with your magic, which will be the equivalent of Ninjutsu, but not with Taijutsu. Since you'll be lacking in the physical area, you will be a Tokubetsu – good enough to not be a Chuunin, not good enough to be a full-fledged Jonin".

She let a few moments pass after his explanation, wondering – and willfully ignoring the fact that that arrogant brat thought he was good at everything, the nerve ! – before saying in a puzzled tone.

"I don't know how I fell about not being 'good enough'", she said, a mild 'huh' in her voice. "I've always been the best – or I always did everything to become the best".

"But everything won't be enough in that case", completed the silver-haired man, understanding her uncertainty.

"Yeah. Kids will be stronger than me, here, and no matter what I do, that won't change", she said softly, looking straight at the sky.

The sun was almost at its peak, so she had to squint her eyes a bit so as to not be blinded. She grimaced – she was sweaty and sticky. She wanted a shower, but that would mean that she had to get up and move, so she decided that she would wait a bit.

"Doesn't matter", dismissed the Jonin with barely a shrug. "Their strength will mean nothing against you if they can't beat you. So in a way, as long as you win, and as long as you don't lose yourself, you'll be stronger than them".

"That's comforting. I think", she nodded slowly, losing the staring contest with the sky and closing her eyes to protect them against the sun's rays.

"You will still need to train regularly during the year, so as to not lose your muscles and stamina – but I don't think you should do anything more today", he said pensively, and she barely contained a snort of disdain at the idea of doing anything tiring _today_. "I will go back to training, though, because that was – err, I mean that I can go a bit longer".

She gave him a good point for not completing his first idea – she _knew_ he had meant to say that what she had done was nothing for him, thank you – and decided that she kind of liked him. A bit. When he wasn't baiting her to see how far she would push herself.

"I'll take a bath", she decided, because in a shower she would have to stand, and that simply wouldn't do. Ninja training was crazy. "As soon as I can get up".

He hummed, not moving, and she finally managed to lean back up, supporting herself on shaky and sore arms.

"Don't mind me", she told him. "You go back to training, I'll… crawl my way into the house, or something".

"Isn't there magic for that ?", and what was that – was he teasing her ? It sure sounded like it.

"There is", she countered, stretching her upper body as best as she could, and thinking of apparition. "But it's not all that comfortable, and I feel too tired anyway".

She had never really liked Magical travels – the Floo always spat her out, she had a deep distrust of Portkays, and Apparition squeezed her in a way that displeased her – and didn't feel like apparating right now, not even to her bathroom.

"Oh ? And isn't there some magic for when you're tired, too ?", he pushed, as if wanting her to admit that Magic couldn't do everything.

But well, he would be disappointed – she had yet to find something Magic couldn't do – bar creating food, but who needed that when they could summon it from someplace else, or use magic to multiply what already exist or accelerate the growth of a plant in order to eat its fruits ?

"There is", she simply said, finally heaving herself up and stumbling on trembling legs until she was inside the house. "But it's a potion and potions, as a rule, taste disgusting – so I try to only use them when it is necessary. Feeling better after training isn't an appropriate use of them".

And with that, snickering internally at the shocked turn of his feelings, she left his presence altogether, promising to herself that she would do some much necessary stretches before taking a much deserved, blissfully hot bath.

She was impatiently waiting the questions about potions and what they could do. They thought Magic was confusing ? Let them learn about what putting weird ingredients into a big cauldron could do.

* * *

And... Done for today !

I already know what the next chapter will be about, so it shouldn't take me too long. I swear I will finish this story, no matter how long it will take. :)

Thanks for the reviews, and the encouragements, everyone :D I do hope you liked this chapter.

Ah, yeah : "A table" is French, and simply means that it's time to eat ; while "Bon Appétit", well, I guess you already know, but it means enjoy your meal. I think that's everything, so bye !

Have a nice day/night/week ^_^


	4. Beware Magic & Beware Plants

Hey !

YOU. ARE. NOT. DREAMING !

Amazing, huh ? Got the sudden inspiration. So here is the new chapter !

Oh, and – for the guest who gave me the ever-so-lovely reviews saying that my fic was 'utterly boring', 'pathetic and annoying', and a 'waste of time'… don't bother giving reviews anymore, thanks.

Anyway, everyone else, I hope you enjoy !

* * *

Kakashi opened his right eye slowly.

One would have some problems doing so without opening the other – at least, succeeding without strangely grimacing, especially when just waking up – but he had become an expert at this. It came with using only one eye outside of fights in his everyday life..

He was lying on a very, _very_ comfortable, four-posted bed, with black sheet – which somehow were always _cool_ , just as the Hime had promised they would be. November was coming fast to its end, but the weather was still relatively warm (as it always was in Fire Country), yet it was one of the first times he didn't have to sleep _on_ his covers rather than _under_ , in order to not be too hot.

As a ninja, he had a high metabolism ; but as a Hatake, his metabolism was even higher. Additionally, that meant that his body heat was also considerably higher – hence the need to avoid overly warm sheets.

But here the sheet kept him cool, and he had stopped wondering about Magic – it only gave him headaches. He was thankful to Hari-san for having used a... spell, she said, on the sheet, and decided to not think about it further.

Still, he know had in front of him yet another day of doing absolutely _nothing_. And while he admitted that Hari-Hime was snarky, funny, smart and not afraid of displaying any of those traits ; he was still _bored_. What _could_ he do ?!

The Hokage had promised him that he would be called, should his presence be needed ; but had been very clear when stating that he wasn't to go on missions higher than D-ranked for as long as he was on watching duty.

 _Meaning a year_.

And since he adamantly refused to do _D-ranked missions –_ his friends would never let it go, he would never live that down, and they would probably be even _more_ boring than pure boredom – he simply couldn't do anything for the moment. But he wouldn't wait a year – he _couldn't_.

He was a ninja ! What would – how could – _Why ?!_

He wasn't made for this, wasn't made to stay in Konoha and do nothing ! Nothing _constructive_! Because while it was procedure to watch any new citizen of Konoha for a year, and while it was _also_ procedure to procure bodyguards to any important person in Konoha ; and that Hari-Hime fitted both those criteria – _he_ knew perfectly well that she wouldn't betray them !

She wouldn't betray Konoha, simply because she had no reason to do so, and lacked the will to cause any problem. She said that she had already had a too long history with problems, and he tended to believe her.

Oh, he knew that she liked to prank people, sometimes – and Kami, he hoped she never met Naruto, though she didn't seem fond of going out of thei- _her_ house – but it was funny, and not malicious in any way.

For example, only yesterday, she had had the wonderful idea to color his ( _beautiful_ ) silver hair ( _of which he was very proud_ ) in ( _a horrible_ ) purple. It clashed terribly with his good looks, but thankfully she had stopped whatever _spell_ she had used on his ( _marvelous_ ) hair, as soon as he explained that it was a _sensible_ point for a Hatake.

She didn't ask 'why', she just stopped it. So really, she didn't have a malicious bone in her body – as long as she wasn't provoked, that is. Considering that she had killed before, and probably tortured for information (for no war can be won without someone having to do the delicate work of obtaining important information from unwilling persons), Kakashi didn't doubt for a second that she could become downright _vicious_ given a reason.

But anyway, all of this to say that, though _he_ was one of the less trusting ninjas of Konoha, he still _trusted_ Hari-Hime. He didn't know why, or how she won his trust. He just knew he hadn't been manipulated in any way – his Hatake side would have sensed it, magic or not, it was too animal-like not to remark false emotions – and he sincerely believed that she was no threat to Konoha... as long as Konoha was no threat to her.

For all she was _willing_ to trust and fight for Konoha, _she_ still didn't trust them, and would retaliate should anything be attempted against her. And he found that he couldn't fault her for that, it was smart and he would have certainly been even more reserved had their positions been reversed – though he would fight her should she try anything against his village.

Nevertheless, he was now on meaningless baby-sitting duty, and he had never been good at those kind of D-ranked missions. Not even when he had been a genin, under Minato's lead, though the D-rank missions had lasted very short time only. Then there had been the war, and then he had never done any D-ranked mission anymore.

And Hari's cooking, though excellent and new, was also very rich. His body was used to take the maximum from food, to burn calories into energy. Which meant that he had a lot of energy, and no actual way to efficiently release it. Training was well and good, but it lacked _pressure_. The pressure you feel when you fight for your life, or for your goal.

Point was, he was a man of action, and there was nothing to do.

Oh, he could train all he wanted. Since it had been confirmed that whatever happened inside the wards, stayed inside them ; he could basically train as much as he wanted without fearing to be spied on. Something that wasn't always possible in Ninja Villages.

Not only they had to keep some advantages from allies (you never show anyone your most secret techniques, or some that you want to keep as an asset ; not even if they're your closest friend), but enemies' spies were to be avoided too. That, and you could never know when one of yours would go rogue. Of course, they didn't suspect each other – they _trusted_ each other with their very _lives_ – but fact was that Nukenins existed.

So caution had to be applied.

Still, it meant that he could now train to his heart's content, not worrying over whether someone would see it or not.

 _And_ the garden was automatically repaired afterwards, so who was he to complain ? Knowing that the Hime had absolutely no interest whatsoever in copying him, since she didn't use chakra and wouldn't be able to use his techniques, he didn't need to hide anymore when training.

Not that he would have feared her copying him, but – wait.

Wait, wait, wait.

 _Wait_.

His eye widened, and he sat upright in his bed.

Everything he had thought about was true. Life was becoming dull and annoying, and he couldn't do missions, hadn't done any in almost a month, and he couldn't go and train with teammates since he couldn't leave Hari-Hime unprotected.

 _But_.

But he _could_ test the Hime, couldn't he ?

She had won a war ! She had fought battles against all odds, and defeated enemies way stronger than her – or, at the very least, with a lot more training than she had. She _had_ to be a worthy opponent.

And though she had been forbidden to use magic in Konoha, because her Kekkai Genkai had to stay a secret (except if she had a real need for this, for example defending herself, or another one, from an attack – which would doubtfully ever happen, since she was always with Kakashi and at least a team of ANBUs)... This didn't apply to her house.

She could do whatever she wanted in it, as long as no one could see her.

And she had said something, last time, about how she was warned when someone entered her wards. Apparently, the wards _themselves_ warned her (how _that_ worked, Kakashi had no idea. He was good at Fuinjutsu, but no genius ; and apparently some wards were based on Runes, which was the equivalent of Fuinjutsu, and it was all too overly complicated for him), so she would just have to warn him, and no one would ever know they were mock-fighting !

Well, he didn't think he would have to try that hard. He _was_ an ANBU, as well as a Jonin ; he didn't think it too far-fetched to think that a woman, that came from a – for the most part – peaceful population, would give him any problem. They had trained together two days a week for almost a month already, so he knew her physical limits. But of course, use of magic would be allowed, so that he could see what she could do.

That was the true – or, at least, official – goal of a possible spar.

From what he had seen thus far, magic was about protection and creation – whether it was glass or water, or changing one's hair color, magic could make this happen. But she had never used it in a fighting contest, and though he wasn't underestimating her, he didn't think he would lose.

So he could _do_ something, and he would have something to report to Hokage-sama, and the day would _not_ be as boring as he had feared it would be !

Alas, it turned out that he _did_ underestimate Hari...

* * *

Hari Potta, as she was known as in Konoha (since exactly four weeks and one day today), looked up pensively.

Excited emotions were suddenly coming from upstairs. She wondered what had Kakashi in such a joy. She had had the distinct impression that he was bored, acting as a bodyguard to protect her from nothing at all.

Well, to be fair, she expected some attempts against her life soon, since her presence and status had been officially revealed to the general population seven days ago. The fact that a Hime had decided to settle in Konoha was without precedent – indeed, no Lords or Hime settled in any ninja Village.

(It was dangerous enough being rich, they didn't need to tempt Fate by living in a Village that was basically composed of killers who would be willing to kill them for the right price).

But that also meant that everyone knew she would give funds to the Village. Whether for her protection, or because she honestly wanted to, wouldn't be known to others ; but it _had_ been announced that she would give annual transfers of money to the Hokage, in order to help the ninja corps.

It probably wouldn't sit well with the others Villages, for money meant a lot even in this world. They would either try to kill her, hence preventing Konoha from receiving money (they wouldn't know that she had decided to give everything to the Village should she die, but she wasn't one for advertising this particular point – only the Hokage and herself were aware of that particular point – she saw no interest in leaving her gold hidden in forever sealed trunks for the rest of eternity, the runes being self-sustaining in magic. What good would it do ?), or try to kidnap her, hence gaining her money in exchange of her life.

In any case, interesting moments were sure to arrive soon, but she did admit that the week since the announcement had been... calm.

Not bad, but certainly not good either. During the previous four weeks since her arrival, her integration in Konoha had been kept an absolute secret, though she had been presented to the Council. She hadn't been present herself, but the Hokage had explained who she was, using her official, fake past ; and told them that she had decided to settle in Konoha.

The last details had been ironed out a week ago, which was when she had been officially presented to the civilians and ninjas of the Village alike. Since then, not much had happened, bar an augmentation of envious and greedy stares when she went to the market.

She was feeling a bit restless, and she knew the silver-haired Jonin had been, too.

So why was he suddenly so excited ? Had he been called by the Hokage for a mission ?

Thinking about it, it was also strange that he was still in bed. Usually, he was up way earlier than her, training in the garden or sometimes cooking breakfast. She had been surprised to discover that he was quite the good cook – though she wasn't fond of Asian breakfasts. She was a British, and that meant coffee, or tea if she felt like it (but she had become used to coffee to act as a wake-up punch, and tea was too soft a beverage to quickly and efficiently wake her up), pumkin juice, toasts, eggs, ham, fruits and marmalade.

She sometimes joined him for physical training, despite having sworn never to do it again with him. Somehow, he always managed to goad her into pushing her own limits – she hated that it was so easy for him to bait her, it was as if the Bastard knew exactly which buttons to push – and she always ended up regretting it. Still, even though it happened, he was always training _before_ she went down, and would keep training _after_ she... went down in exhaustion.

So it was strange for him to laze around in bed, though he did like to act like a lazy man. Well, whatever worked for him.

Pushing her thoughts out of her mind, Hari poured herself a large glass of cold pumpkin juice. She remembered Kakashi's expression when she proposed him one, she had almost laughed to his face. But it _had_ been funny, in her defense.

Well, it came with being a wizard, she supposed. She didn't know of one that disliked pumpkin juice. Every wizard and witch, whether they were Pureblood or Muggleborn, or a goddamn _Death Eater –_ all liked pumpkin juice, and it was in every home and on every table. Muggleborns, since their very first year, learned to love the stuff – there was more pumpkin juice than water on the tables, during the meals, at Hogwarts.

And it wasn't limited to Great Britain, either. It came with having to drink it every day – that, and other juices such as orange or apple were rather rare in the Wizarding world, because the plants didn't thrive around magic. Pumpkins did, though, hence their presence everywhere. It absorbed magic, and could grow to amazing proportions.

She remembered fondly the giant pumpkins Hagrid had in his self-made garden, at Hogwarts. They weren't the biggest one could find in the Wizarding World, but they were of amazing proportion still for a Muggle-raised like herself. And Hermione.

Anyway, drinking it soothed the magical pathways of wizards and witches, pathways that were more and more regularly used by children at the age of eleven. That was why it could as well have been mandatory, in wizarding houses and schools ; and why everyone drank it as often as possible. She, herself, had been surprised first – _who_ would drink this, seriously ? – but it had felt so _right_ , so _good_ , not in taste, but in a pulse of smooth, cool energy filling her body the first time she had drank it.

It had soothed her pathways, irritated by years of accidental magic. Every Muggleborn had felt the same way, she knew, because Hermione had, at first, disdainfully looked at her glass, during the Welcoming Feast.

But she hadn't dared disobey the Prefect's order to drink it, and Hari perfectly remembered the amazed expression that had illumined her then would-be best friend's face. It had been the same as her own, though she hadn't been able to see herself. And that was the reason pumpkin juice was almost a synonym of wizards.

Not that Muggles ever knew. For them, pumpkins were only for Samhain. Strange, that – they were spot on for wands and brooms and even, surprisingly enough, with pointed hats and dresses. And owls, cats, toads, they even knew about dragons, unicorns, giants, werewolves ! For a world supposed to be protected by the Internal Statute of Secrecy, Muggles knew an awful lot about it. They even knew that pumpkins and wizards were linked together, though they ignored to which extent. But they knew _a lot_ about their supposedly protected world.

Even if they thought it was all children's stories.

Anyway. Now, Hari didn't need to drink it anymore. Her pathways were all developed, and way larger than any other wizard's, because of the amount of magic she possessed . But when you drank it every other day, for seven years straight ; and didn't stop drinking it for another century...

Well, you kind of develop an addiction.

Plus, it _was_ very good. For wizards.

She was startled out of her memories by the sound of an explosion. Blinking in surprise, she realized that she had been thinking about _pumpkin juice_ of all things for almost an hour ; and that Kakashi was now training, as he was every day when they weren't outside the wards.

Strange. She had never heard him go out. Well, she never _heard_ him do anything, really ; but she generally always knew where he was, as long as he was inside her magical awareness. She shrugged, thinking she had to be tired.

During the near month that she had been in Konoha, she had faced a deeply emotionally tiring situation, when she had had to lower her Occlumency barriers, and face her own past once more. But she had also spent the time reading books, mastering a bit more magic. Only wards for now, but she would be damned if she didn't have the single best protected house of all the Elemental Nations.

She hadn't had the time to go out, to breathe something that wasn't the dusty air that came with old books, except for when she had to do some grocery shopping, or placing some new repere points in newly discovered parts of Konoha for her Map. It still wasn't finished, but in her defense, she found that she disliked being out in the Village.

Too many people, too many possible threats, too many leering looks or greedy stares. It made her twitchy. She felt much better in the secure haven that was her house and garden.

Anyway, she closed the book that she had left open in front of her an hour ago. She had wanted to read it, but apparently today her own mind didn't want to work right now. She didn't want to see another sentence on wards, on Runes, on Arithmancy (damn it !) or on intrinsic fluxes of magic on which posing the runic stones, depending on the positions of different and specific constellations.

No, thanks.

She wanted to _do something_ , but she _couldn't_. Not before one. Whole. Year.

She would never survive ! She wanted to do missions !

Sighing, she silently stepped out in the garden. She took great care in concealing her presence from the shinobi standing in front of her, facing the opposite direction. Hands on the hips, he was looking over the destructed garden with something akin to satisfaction, she thought. Well, from her critical eye, he hadn't made more damage than the other times.

The satisfaction was odd.

It was strange, really. Every day, without fault, he trained out there. Noises and exploding sounds, which disturbed her lectures. But she never said anything to him about it – because, the first time she tried to do so, after having endured a whole hour of this incessant racket... she had seen the shinobi standing proudly in the center of his destruction.

But – _but_... By then, his tank top was sticking to his torso thanks to his sweat, and his impossibly long legs were hugged by his black trousers, and his skin and muscles were glistening under the sun, and she found that she had no problem with the noise, at all.

Because if she had to support it, in order to be treated with such a vision... then she _would_. Priorities, sacrifices, and all that.

His face may be disgusting for all she knew, but his body certainly _wasn't_ , and that was good enough for Hari.

Plus, the noise had kind of become a welcome sound of life, in the background. It soothed her even if she wasn't realizing it when it happened. A constant reminder that she was not alone.

She took a minute to appreciate the view, as she always did, before coughing politely. She refrained from smirking at his startled jump, muttered curse, and flying kunai. Not in that order.

The kunai was neatly stopped by her protection bubble, that she had risen specifically for this outcome, and she was subjected to a death glare from the still cursing shinobi – a strangely effective death glare, considering that it came from only one eye.

"What ?", she innocently asked.

She _did_ love to startle Kakashi. Ninjas were all sneaky and silent. _She_ would never know where he was, if she didn't have magic. And for people always aware of their surroundings, it was particularly pleasant to surprise them this way.

She often did it to Kakashi – hiding her very presence until not even him could know where she was, could not smell her nor hear her ; then putting her protection Bubble up and startling him – it was, in a way, one of her guilty pleasures.

"How do you _do_ that ?!", snapped the silver-haired Jonin, like he did every time he was caught like that. "You know what ? Nevermind".

He knew well enough by now that he wouldn't have an answer. Only that annoying, smug little smirk.

He looked at her, calculating. It was her turn to be unsure.

"What... ?"

"You said you won a war, didn't you ?"

"Err... Yes ?", tentatively confirmed Hari, though she had no idea of where Kakashi was going like that.

"Fight with me".

Now that startled her. She blinked quickly.

"... What ?"

He shot her an amused look.

"That's the third time you said 'what'. Try to vary the questions, will you ?"

She glared at him – the nerves ! – before clearing her throat, and smoothing her face.

"You want me to fight you ?"

"That's it", sagely nodded the Jonin.

"And... why ?"

"I need to evaluate your skills. I know you won a war, so you must have some. But I don't know them, and I need to, if I want to protect you the best I can. Your status had been announced yesterday, and I'm sure some will try to – attack you soon". Kakashi smoothly avoided the word 'kill'. He always did when talking to civilians he was asked to protect, and subconsciously did so again. After all, the Hime wasn't a ninja. "And for that I need you to fight me".

He beamed at the petite woman, looking very proud of his reasoning – especially considering that the truth was that he simply wanted to fight. She tried a false smile.

"Ah, I – see your reasoning", she tried. "But I don't think it's a good idea. I fully trust your competences, so I don't think I will risk anything during those... attacks".

And really, it wasn't that she didn't want to _fight_ him, because it would bring a bit of adrenaline and fun. She very much wanted to do it.

But she wasn't sure she wanted him to realize the extent to which magic could be frightening. She didn't think she was exaggerating either. In this world, having magic placed her at the top. Being immortal placed her _over_ the top.

A younger witch, or one with less years of training, would probably be weaker ; and less adapted to this world. But Hari was _good_ at adapting herself to the circumstances, always had been. The result was that no one on this planet would ever be able to defeat her.

She wasn't speaking of _killing_ her, since that was impossible from the very beginning. But _defeat_ her, win against her. Magic was superior to chakra in every aspect.

Fact was, she didn't want ninjas to realize that, become wary of her, distrustful, _hateful_ or _greedy_. She had enough of that with the civilians once they had learned of her wealth. Whether the ninjas would try to eliminate, or control, her – she refused these outcomes.

And every person she had ever met became scared of her, of what she could do. Eventually, she found herself alone. She didn't want this again.

"Ah, don't be afraid", tried to reassure the Jonin, misreading the situation. "I'll hold back".

And, _oh_. Oh.

Oh.

 _Hold back_ , it was ?

Like – like, not give his all ?

Well.

No.

Hari may be scared of being alone and rejected again (particularly since she had come to appreciate the silver-haired smartass, in the _single month_ she had known him – that was a first, for her)... But she refused to back down.

She had always refused that. And to be underestimated ? Treated like a frail little girl ? She hated that. She had proved her worth countless times, and she would be damned if she let someone put her down, even if not maliciously. They had all tried to do it, the wizards – after she had defeated Voldemort, of course. Curse them.

Kakashi simply didn't know better... but she wouldn't lie.

No way.

Never lie about herself. She had done that during twenty years of her life – since her placement at the Dursleys', during Hogwarts, and up until two years after the Final Battle. And it had made her utterly miserable.

Plus, it was a question of pride. She refused to lose to the Bastard.

So she raised a sharp eyebrow.

"Hold back, it is ?"

"Maa, I didn't mean it like that", corrected Kakashi, realizing that insulting a warrior and a survivor wasn't a good idea. Kami knew no one ever insulted (officially) retired ninjas on their skills. It wasn't good for one's health.

"No, no, I understand", and this time, it was Hari's turn to beam. "Let's fight, then".

She waved her hand lazily, and the garden repaired itself quickly. She distractedly thought that she ought to simply engrave repairing runes on stones, strategically placed around the garden, to ensure that it would be repaired after each training. It would be more practical.

But it wasn't as if it was _needed_. Repairing it didn't cost a lot of magic – in fact, almost none at all. Used to repair things broken, _reparo_ usually had to fight others' magic, or other spells, in order to function properly on magical objects.

But it met no resistance from chakra.

Silently, they took place on opposed places in the garden. Kakashi's back was turned towards the trees in the back, while Hari's back was turned towards the fence, and the street. They measured themselves, Hari's magic at the ready.

Suddenly, without warning, Kakashi dashed towards her ; and her eyes widened slightly in shock. She realized that, while she _had_ trained in speed and reflexes, she was still lacking in those aspects. Especially against a Jonin-level shinobi.

She had never actually realized the difference between Genin and Jonin levels. True, she intellectually _knew_ it existed, and that it was large ; but it was the first time she _saw_ it.

She immediately apparated near the fence, looking into the curious eye of a surprised shinobi, kunai held high in the air. At the approximate emplacement of her throat. Wow, he was _fast_. She hadn't even seen him come.

She didn't move, but took care to slightly twitch a finger. She didn't need to move at all, but she liked to do it – and she wanted to see if Kakashi would see it. Ninjas were known for their observational skills, among a lot of other things.

And true enough, he _did_ see it, for he immediately jumped back and up – just in time to avoid the invisible and quick _Bombarda_ cast his way. The curse destroyed the ground, earth and grass flying everywhere – but as any good ninja would, Kakashi noted that the spell impacted right _in front_ of where he _had been_.

Somehow, he doubted that Hari missed. She had deliberately aimed in front of him, and not _him_. It was good to know that she wasn't trying to kill him – because between the scentless, soundless, invisible spell, and the effects it caused ; he wasn't sure he would survive if she did try.

He quickly raised his headband, opening his Sharingan. He hoped to be able to at least _see_ the Hime's magic, before it touched him. Stabilizing on a branch of the tree he had jumped into, he looked down at the woman. Maybe, _maybe_ he had been wrong, when he had said he would hold back.

He gulped quietly. Kami, women could be frightening, but Kunoichis even more so. Especially when someone suggested that they lacked skill. He saw her finger twitch again, Sharingan memorizing the gesture involuntarily, and immediately shunshin-ed next to Hari.

His hand was stopped by the same invisible barrier that had stopped his attack, twenty-nine days ago, at the gates. Hearing a terrible, tearing sound, he didn't try to attack again, and instead decided to look behind himself. Both his eyes widened.

The large tree, on which he had been standing mere seconds before, was sliced in tiny bits. Sharp shards of wood were flying, and the whole tree was collapsing on itself, crumbling onto the grass. There wasn't a single part of it spared. If Kakashi hadn't shunshin-ed...

(Of course, if he hadn't, Hari would have apparated next to him, taken him, and apparated away the both of them. In less than half-a-second. Or she would have _accio-_ ed him. But he didn't know _that_ , and didn't need to know it).

"Oh, fuck...", he muttered, before realizing that when he had been standing, gaping like an absolute idiot at the destruction in front of him, Hari had taken the time to put a kunai at his throat. "I guess that means you win".

He dared anyone to have stayed on guard when witnessing such a thing, especially since the Hime no longer registered as a threat in his mind.

"I guess it does", she smiled smugly back at him.

Her eyes were brightened with joy, and he lost himself in them for a few seconds. Say whatever you want, but her eyes were mesmerizing. Such a captivating shade of green... Once again, he found himself thinking how _adequate_ it was for someone with such green eyes, to join the Village Hidden in the Leaves.

"Magic is... something else", he admitted finally, looking back at the crushed tree.

"Why, thank you", honestly smiled Hari, waving her hand once more, and repairing the garden.

"That thing you did, when you disappeared and appeared in another place, it looked like a _shunshin_. What was it ?", asked the Jonin, because he hadn't known magic could do something like that.

A _shunshin_ energized the whole body of a ninja, along with his brain, with chakra. It permitted the user to move at insane speed, though the distance it allowed was limited, and it didn't do well when taking turns were needed. Or course, that small flaw was corrected easily – they just had to do multiple _shunshin_ one after the other, which was easy since the brain was energized enough it allowed them to think and act quickly.

Generally, it was used in fights, so that one could avoid an enemy's technique, or could sneak behind the target, or just to get a burst of speed so as to get an advantage and get the hell out of there. It wasn't enough to save one's life, of course, since it basically just gave a head-start, and then the chase would begin – but one second could make a difference between life or death in their world, and that was all someone needed.

The other way of using the _shunshin_ was the most used – it permitted a ninja to move quickly inside their Village, since they knew the topography perfectly, and didn't need to stop or even really _think_ about what they had to do in order to go somewhere. That was one of the most used way of moving among ninja in a Village, and what the ANBU used always, since it was important for them not to be seen.

They were supposed to be shadows, and the _shunshin_ allowing them to move at such speed that one couldn't see them move, that was the one technique they used the most outside of training, when they were in Konoha.

But what the Hime had used hadn't been a _shunshin_. Not only she did not have chakra, but he had been centering his senses on her, and she had simply _ceased_ to be in one place, only to reappear in another. She hadn't _moved_ , she had… he didn't know what she had done.

"Oh, apparating ?", she mused, looking thoughtful. "I thought it was the same principle ?"

"… What do you know of the _shunshin_ ?", Kakashi decided it would be easier to exchange information if they both knew what they were talking about.

"Well… you go from one place to another ?", she said it in an obvious tone, as if questioning his intelligence.

And that was quite unnecessary, thank you very much.

"Yeah…", he drawled, whole body language and tone of voice making it clear that _he_ was now questioning _her_ intelligence. The twitch her eyebrow developed was very satisfying. "but _how_ do we do that ?"

"Well", she blinked slowly, as if startled. "You just… go ? I don't – I'm not sure what you want me to say…"

"When using _shunshin_ , a ninja boost their speed with chakra. It cannot be done for long, it cannot go through walls, and it can only go in straight lines ; but basically it allows us to run at very high speed", he explained – he had been right, their techniques were two very different things.

"What, so you _run_ ?", asked the black-haired women, looking stupefied by that information.

"Yep".

"Oh", she blinked again. "I hadn't known that. I thought it was similar to apparition".

Ah, they were going somewhere. Kakashi thought his patience should be praised.

"And what does 'apparition' do ?", he pushed calmly, resisting the need to sigh, or otherwise show how frustrating the whole discussion was being for him.

He just wanted to know what she had done ! Was she being slow on purpose ?

"Well, I'm not sure of the theory, or why it works that way", she began, and he nodded slowly.

He had remarked that, about the Hime. She was smart, scarily so, in that that she knew how to do a lot of things. She wasn't stupid, she was cunning, and had learned everything she could get her hands on. The fact that she could spend hours curled on a couch, with a book on her lap, learning about Runes (which was all theory since she wasn't doing anything with them for now), showed that she was smart.

But she didn't care about the reasoning behind the spells, and wasn't interested to learn _why_ magic worked that way. She wasn't interested in discovering why she could do what she could, or why it wouldn't work if done differently. She learned what could be useful, what she could do later – but she didn't really care about the specifics.

So her not knowing the theory behind 'apparition' wasn't surprising.

"But basically, I can go anywhere I've already been to, and I can also go anywhere I have seen", she finished.

"What is the difference ?", he asked her, because while he thought he knew, he didn't want them to be speaking of two different things without even realizing it. They did that, sometimes.

"Well, if you show me a picture of a place, and tell me roughly where it is, then I will be able to go there even if I, myself, had never been there before", she clarified.

Well, he had been right. Nice to know.

Still, her technique sounded extremely interesting.

"What if the place is in another country ?"

"Eh, that's not a problem", she shrugged. "It will cost more magic, but I – I don't run like you do, I just go from one place to another. Like a jump".

So that nullified the limits of the _shunshin_ – walls and curves didn't matter. Distance didn't either.

"Can you take someone with you ?", he wondered, since _shunshin_ allowed a ninja to take another in side-along _shunshin_.

"Yeah", she confirmed. "Up to two, three if I push it, but more and we would risk splinching".

And, okay, what ?

" _Splinching_ ?"

"Yep", she nodded, as if all was perfectly normal. "It isn't rare for debutants, or drunks for that matter, to disappear when they shouldn't, and to leave parts of themselves behind".

Oh, wow. What ? _Shunshin_ could cause disorientation, and could even cause your first up-close meeting with a tree if you didn't stop on time. It could cause muscle tear, and broken bones – but leaving a part of the body behind ?

The number of crippled in the Magical world must be insane. Probably explained why they were all crazy – they probably left a small part of their brains behind, too. What a crazy, dumb world – Kakashi kept being surprised by human idiocy when learning about that world.

"Yeah, never happened to me, but I've heard it's a bother. Happened to one of my friend, though it was only part of his eyebrow. Still, it's not rare for people to come to Saint Mungo to drop off body parts other people left behind ; or for splinched people to come to St Mungo, and tell where they had been when they had disapparated, so that the healers can send someone to get the body parts".

Kakashi blinked, very slowly. He inhaled, kept the air in his lungs, and exhaled slowly. He did this a few times, determined to keep his cool.

Once assured he wouldn't scream, he calmly looked at the Hime.

"I have three questions. One, what is the difference between disapparition and apparition. Two, what is a St Mungo. Three, why would they need the body parts for. Aren't splinched people basically dead ?"

He honestly didn't think that a person having lost his or her leg had any luck to survive – not only the pain would make it extremely hard to concentrate, but they hadn't been trained to think through it as ninja were, thus he very much doubted they would think about going to whatever Saint Mungo was. Not only that, but if apparating – or disapparating, whatever it was – was that difficult, then he didn't think doing it while in pain would be very wise, or successful, for that matter.

"Well, first, apparating and disapparating are the same thing, basically. It's just that when you apparate from a point A to a point B, for people still at point A, you have disappated – you have left. For people at point B, you have apparated – you have arrived".

Kakashi nodded – that was logical. For once.

"Fair enough. What else ?"

"St Mungo is our hospital", she simply said, not seeing the need to explain further than that.

"Okay", he nodded – he didn't want to know more about it right now, he had more important things to do. "Next".

"Splinching is when you leave a part of yourself behind. But when this happens, that part is still magically relied to you. The pain is limited, since your body think the part is still here, and if it's done quickly enough, it can be reattached to your body, and you can be on your way".

The silence was loud.

"You can reattach body parts ?", Kakashi was the one to break it, in an astonished whisper.

"Well, yeah", she nodded – it was true that wounds made by the darkest of magics couldn't be healed properly, and limbs couldn't be reattached if they had been severed by dark magic, but such wasn't the case for apparition. She didn't think that it was the simple fact of _reattaching_ limbs which had shocked Kakashi. "Since the splinching of someone has been done by his own magic, and since the magic still connect the parts".

Kakashi nodded slowly, missing the fact that she was only talking of wounds made by apparating. He didn't realize that reattaching body parts could be done in other situations – the simple fact that the magic relied the parts explained why reattaching them was possible.

"Okay. What happens in side-along apparating splinching ?"

He supposed that the splinching of the 'passenger' was done by the 'conductor's' magic. What then ?

"Well, it's the same", she shrugged, frowning slightly. She had never thought she would one day spend so much time explaining Apparition of all things. "The one making the apparition connect his magic to the other, but it doesn't move the other, it simply direct the other's magic. So if the passenger ends up splinched, it's by his own magic".

"Okay. Okay", he mumbled, feeling slightly dizzy. "That… makes as much sense as someone knowing about magic could expect".

He would have loved to know the _why_ behind the _how_ , but Hari simply hadn't cared to learn.

"Can you show me how it feels ?", he asked the younger woman.

"What ? Apparating ?", she blinked up at him, befuddled. "How could I do that ?"

He stared blankly at her. "How about you side-along apparate me ?", he deadpanned.

"Huh". The Hime blushed spectacularly. "Sorry. I haven't done that since… quite a while".

She had never had someone to side-apparate with. Not since the end of the war. She had been alone, and without friends – not that she had tried to make new ones, no thanks, once burned, twice shy – and had thus never had to side-along apparate someone. That's why she hadn't thought of that directly – side-along apparition demanded a certain amount of trust in the person making the apparition, and she had never let someone get close enough to her that they would trust her.

Kakashi didn't say anything, instead he went on.

"How about I _shunshin_ with you so that you can feel the difference, and then you apparate with me ?"

He wanted to see if she could apparate with him, since he didn't have magic on his own. There would probably be a difference, right ? Since apparently, when side-along apparating with someone, they also used the passenger's own magic.

"It's – uh, okay, deal", she nodded slowly.

"Fine. Now I'm sorry, but it's not really comfortable", he warned her, wrapping his hand securely around the woman's arm.

He quickly _shunshined_ them both on the other side of the garden, a short enough distance for a first-timer it wouldn't be really unpleasant, and quickly positioned himself to catch her should she fall, all the while being out of the way should she throw up, mindful of how people reacted when they first shunshined.

But she surprised him (as she was prone to do) by quickly standing straight, looking at him head-on, not seeming the least bit disturbed by the experience. No throwing up, no dizziness, nothing. Huh. She had a better stomach than many – he, himself, had felt a bit dizzy after his first _shunshin_.

"Not bad", she said appreciatively. "A bit disconcerting, the burst of speed, but much more comfortable than first-time apparition".

And how comforting, knowing that, just before his first apparition. She was so thoughtful.

"My turn".

"Sure", she grinned, extending her arm towards him. "Don't let go, no matter what".

Well, since Kakashi didn't fancy experiencing what _splinching_ felt like, that was a no-brainer. He clenched his hand just softly enough to not hurt the Hime, and nodded.

The woman made a fast turn on herself, so fast he wouldn't have seen it if he hadn't been a ninja – and what was surprising was that he found himself turning as well, without even wanting to do it. Then came the surprisingly unpleasant experience. He felt the Hime's arm twist away from him, and re-doubled his grip. The next thing he knew everything went black; he was pressed very hard from all directions; he could not breathe, there were iron bands tightening around his chest; his eyeballs were being forced back into his head; his ear-drums were being pushed deeper into his skull (1).

When it stopped, whole body tense and ready to fight – against what he didn't know, but he was ready to lash out – he was in front of his sofa, on his part of the coffee table. The Hime was right next to him, and she was scrutinizing him as if waiting to see his reaction.

He stopped the shiver that had been making its way up his spine, and deliberately relaxed his body, muscle by muscle, waiting for the adrenaline to fall down, and for his heart to slow down. She had said it was unpleasant.

She was a dirty liar.

Who, in their right mind, subjected themselves to that just so they could go to one point to another ? Except in a life-or-death situation, Kakashi would rather walk.

"That was… interesting", he finally said, once his nerves didn't feel so raw. "A bit disconcerting – does it even get better ?"

After all, _shunshin_ got better once you got used to it.

"Yep", she confirmed. "It's also better for the one apparating, so it's not so bad, really. Still, it was harder than I thought - I had heard that it was harder to apparate with Muggles, but I had never done it before".

"... What's a Muggle ?", he asked, having the faint feeling that he had been insulted, somehow.

"Oh, it's just how we call people who don't have Magic", she explained.

Mmmh. Knowing what he did about the Wizards – the Hime excepted – he had the feeling that the term wasn't eulogistic. Even if she probably hadn't used it that way, it was most certainly a derogatory term. Bah, the more he learned about the Wizarding world and its inhabitants, the less he ever wanted to visit it even once. Even if it became possible one day, somehow.

"I have chakra, though", he countered, because okay, he may not have Magic, but he wasn't lacking in his world's energy either.

"I know", she rolled her eyes. "But chakra is neutral, I've found, and chakra and Magic don't mix. I can't use my magic to dirige your chakra, just the same that Genjutsu don't work on me since it targets the victim's chakra to deceive the senses".

She would know, the Creepy Weirdo Snake had tried to use some on her as a last resort.

Kakashi hummed as he took in everything he had learned in the last hour, classing and analyzing the information. He would have to make a new report to the Hokage – he had to meet with the man tonight, once the Hime was asleep, since she herself had a meeting with Sarutobi in a few moments now.

She had a meeting once a week with the Hokage, to make sure she was adapting to the life in the Village. It wasn't usually done when someone decided to settle in Konoha, but Hari was an important person, so it wasn't surprising that she had to do this. Of course, after that meeting was over, it was Kakashi's turn to go report to his Hokage, without the Hime knowing. For that, he went at night – but he was under no illusion that she didn't know about that. She had told him that she knew when someone entered her wards, it was logical that she also knew when someone exited them. Hence Kakashi's goings were not a secret for her – though he had never outright asked her.

Still, he had learned a lot, and the report tonight would be substantial.

He silently followed the smaller woman back out in the garden, watching quietly as she repaired the garden as she always did. Magic, yet again, never stopped to amaze or surprise him. He still had to ask her about potions – potions, really ? – but decided that he didn't want to breach that subject right now. Let's learn about Magic first before asking about the different branches relied to it.

It would be the same if it was the ninja arts : he had began to learn about what Ninjutsu was, and he would wait to have learned everything he could about it before asking about poison.

"What else can it do ?", asked Kakashi, assured at least that he wouldn't have to go to the extremes in order to protect her.

(Hell, as things were, it would probably be _her_ protecting _him_. He was determined to not let this happen).

"I already told you. Everything", she chirped happily.

He rolled his eye, putting his Hitai-ate back down on his left one.

"Yes, but concretively ?".

Hari gave him an odd look for a few moments, before smiling deviously. He automatically tensed. He knew a prankster's smile when he saw one. He had watched over Naruto when he was in the ANBU !

" _What_?"

"Concretively, you ask ?"

"Yes ?", he tentatively confirmed, feeling the sudden need to take his question back.

Her smile widened, and he felt a strange feeling in his body. He didn't dare look down.

"What... was that ?"

He kept his body rigid, hoping against hope that it was nothing.

"Why don't you see for yourself ?", winningly asked Hari.

And he did. Slowly looking down himself, he couldn't retain a horrified whine.

Gone was his (marvelous) body. Gone were his clothes. Gone were – _gone_. He incomprehensively stared at his _breasts_ for a few seconds, before looking back up at the Hime, eye as wide as it could be.

No.

 _No_.

It was – he was _dreaming_. _Nightmaring_ , if such a word existed.

Nevermind that he suddenly felt a strange weight on his torso. Nevermind that he suddenly was encased in a dark blue, silken kimono. Nevermind that his feet were bundled up inside useless, pretty, high-heeled shoes.

With a strangled scream, he quickly put his hand between his legs, and – _gone_.

 _No_.

He looked up with horrified fury.

"What did you _do_ ?!"

Hari was laughing uproariously, so much so that tears were running freely on her cheeks.

"Ah ah ah ah – you are – your _face_ !"

"Stop... stop _this !_ ", he shrieked – and he didn't care that his voice was way too _high_. He was panicked, and he wanted _his_ body _back_!

"Oh, look at the hour ! I have to go, meeting with the Hokage in a few minutes... See you around !"

And with that cheeky sentence, Hari Potta turned around and _fled_ , out of the house and on the rooftops, running quickly towards the Hokage tower... still laughing like mad.

Kakashi didn't wait even for a second before chasing after her, yelling and cursing loudly, but sadly often tripping over him- _herself_ in those useless, dangerous, high heels.

* * *

Ninjas and civilians alike weren't sure of what they had seen, or simply heard for some of them, this morning.

The day had been, up until now, perfectly normal. As normal as life in a ninja Village could be.

No attack, no assassination attempt, no explosion, nothing. Rumors were flying left and rights about the newly announced Hime – about her beauty, wealth, and kindness ; about the tragedy that was her past (she was the last one of her Clan), and about the fact that she was _young_ and _single_. They now all knew the name of the mysterious, exotic beauty that had been seen on the market a few times already.

Ninjas were considering what her presence meant to Konoha, wondering why she had decided to settle in a ninja Village of all things, and why she was considered so important by the Hokage, that he even assigned the Copy-Cat ninja himself as her bodyguard.

It wasn't rare for nobles to ask for A-rank bodyguards, of course ; but Kakashi was a living legend as far as even ninjas were concerned, and though he was highly sought after, it was the first time he was given such bodyguard mission for such a long time.

 _A year_.

No, there was something else there – they just didn't know what. And not knowing, of course, made them suspicious. Then there was the fact that the Hime should be _dead_ , and even though their Hokage had clearly stated that they were not to bother her, and that she was no threat to the Village, they simply didn't trust her – at all.

But no matter what everyone thought this morning – though it was nearing noon – the peaceful chirping of life was suddenly broken by some loud noises.

First, those skilled enough could see a young woman (quickly identified as the aforementioned Hime) running across the rooftops, laughing madly, clad in a emerald kimono, her luscious black hair flying behind her. That in itself was strange enough, considering that not only was the Hime generally calm and collected – no one had ever seen her laugh in public – there was also the fact she was _running across rooftops._

(There had been a rumor saying that she had done it once before, during her arrival at the Village, but no ninja had taken it seriously, for it had seemed preposterous).

As in, running ninja-style.

Like, using chakra, and all.

Which would mean that she had been trained in ninja arts.

(Which would be inconceivable. Nobles don't train, ever. They laze around, eating and drinking, plotting ; and thinking themselves better than anyone else... _And_ she didn't have chakra. They decided then and there that they liked her even less than before. She was an enigma, and they didn't like those).

Stranger yet, she was being hunted by another woman – one they were _sure_ they should know, but couldn't quite recall. No matter how much they tried, they couldn't shake the feeling of knowing the person. It was highly disturbing and irritating.

Said person was, as said before, chasing after the Hime. But she wasn't laughing at all – in fact, she was showing her vivid imagination, and in-depth knowledge of various curses. Strange, coming from such a beautiful woman.

Though probably not as exotic as the Hime – they had never seen a woman like _her_ before – this one had long silver hair flashing in her back, and was hugged by a dark blue kimono. Not much of her face was seen – they were both running very quickly – but some very observant ninjas _thought_ there was a mask, keeping the lower half of her face hidden.

Still, the Hime was Kakashi's responsibility, and they all knew better than to suppose he wasn't aware of what was happening. The Hatake was a very serious and expert shinobi, and if he didn't want to stop whatever was happening, then they wouldn't either. It wasn't their mission. Intruding would not only mean more work for them, when there was no doubt no need for it ; it would also be rude and Kakashi may become annoyed with them.

Not on their to-do list.

So that's what ninjas heard and saw this beautiful morning.

Civilians just heard a joyous, bell-like laugh, lifting their spirits for a bit – right before they frowned and put their hands on their children's ears. Such curses shouldn't be uttered aloud, and even less in front of children !

Ninjas really wouldn't recognize _decorum_ if it bite them in the ass, they thought grimly.

Anyway, the day then continued as if nothing had happened, as peaceful as it had been before – though it was now different from any other day of the past week.

(That, and a few ninjas would have wanted to know the two women a bit more. They certainly were something else. Alas, the silver-haired one was unknown, and Kakashi was very protective of the black-haired Hime. She was _very rarely_ out of her house, and when she was, Kakashi's body language dissuaded any approach – except for stupid civilians who just _couldn't_ take a hint).

* * *

Sarutobi Hiruzen was painstakingly working through his piles of accumulated paperwork. He couldn't seem to ever defeat it ! There was always more and more papers waiting for his signature – and what did he _care_ about a new shop opening in the center of Konoha ?!

It had nothing to do with the Ninjas Corps – it was just a butcher shop becoming a baker shop ! What was the _point_ of him having to validate this ?

It just meant more paperwork !

Muttering darkly against Minato, the Sandaime desperately wished for something to happen. He dearly wanted to _burn_ those thrice-damned papers, but was kept firmly in check by his strong sense of duty, as every ninja was prone to be.

Yesterday, he had been able to avoid it for two whole hours, since he had organized a Council meeting. It was the last one before they announced the presence of Hari Potta, Hime and new citizen of Konoha, to the world.

(He wasn't nearly naive enough to think that one country wouldn't know of her existence one day after the announcement, even if that country was at the other side of the world. Spies were something else).

Of _course_ , the civilian side of the Council was still deeply interested – since the Hime was a civilian, she should fell under their jurisdiction ; and they very much wanted to take advantage of that.

Her amazing wealth had been evasively confirmed by Sarutobi – he hadn't had much of a choice, it was that or outright say how rich she was. It would have attracted too much greed. At least, ' _more gold than I can count_ ' left everything to the imagination, which would always be _less_ than what the Hime really had.

Still, he had made it perfectly clear that she was _not_ , in fact, under the Civilian council's jurisdiction. Until she had passed the one-year trial period, she was under _his_ jurisdiction. He never said anything about her wish to become a kunoichi – now was not the moment to alert them. They would be pains in his... backside well enough as soon as they learned about it, no point in offering himself a whole year of unnecessary torments.

Sighing again, he shot a dark look at the ceiling's left corner. He _knew_ Rabbit was mocking him. But did she think paperwork was easy ? It was a terrible foe – the only one he had never defeated.

He was resignedly picking _yet another_ paper, when his sharp ears heard an approaching laughter. His eye twitched slightly – who dared be so amused when he was stuck with annoying paperwork ?!

Then he realized that the laughter was coming right _there_. In fact – yes, there it was.

A person suddenly burst into the place by the window (and _why_ did his ninjas seem to ignore every door's existence ?!), crashing on the floor in front of his desk. He immediately recognized Hari Potta, wheezing and laughing so hard that she was crying.

His ANBUs guards had been ready to attack the unidentified threat before it even entered the room, but he had sharply signaled them to back down.

Not that he thought they would be able to kill her, even by accident ; but he didn't want them to learn about her magic. Then, some very loud and imaginative curses were heard – he commended the person's imagination – and another woman crashed through the window.

Her smoky gray eye darted around the room, quickly narrowing on the still laughing woman on the ground.

Sarutobi dimly thought the newcomer made him think about someone else...

"YOU !", seethed the silver-haired woman, jumping onto the dark-haired one, and trying to strangle her.

The other was still laughing, and Sarutobi realized the furious one wasn't really trying to kill her. She was, in fact, taking care not to hurt her. Mm, strange.

The silver-haired one really looked familiar... Then it came.

She had the exact same hair than Kakashi ! Except hers was longer. Strangely enough, she also wore a black mask, on the lower part of her face. In fact, she even wore her headband over her left eye, _exactly_ like Kakashi did.

And now that he thought about it, he had no silver-haired _woman_ among his ninjas.

Now, he may be old, but he was in no way stupid – and having known the Hime for almost a month already, with weekly meetings, he knew that magic could do _anything_. Almost.

He eyes widened under the surprise.

Because, while he _didn't_ have a silver-haired, mask-wearing, one-eyed _kunoichi_ in his ranks ; he _did_ have a silver-haired, mask-wearing, one-eyed _shinobi_ in them. And he realized _who_ the mysterious _woman_ was.

What. The. Hell.

"Rabbit, out", he ordered, and the ANBU obeyed, though he could feel she was surprised and worried about letting him here with potential threats. But Boar was still there, and he already knew about magic, since he had been there during his first meeting with the witch.

He quickly lightened his pipe, puffing contently on it, while looking over his new citizen, and his best Jonin. It seemed magic would never stop amaze him.

"If you would explain ?"

His question went unheard in the mock-fighting that happened in front of him. Kakashi – he was almost _sure_ the woman was his Jonin, and what a strange thought – was trying to make the Hime stop laughing, but it seemed to be in vain.

He observed them for a bit, silently. Both women were pressed together, clothes rumpled and hair disheveled – but that did nothing to lower their beauty. In fact – damn.

He realized with a start that he had a perfect scenario for his student, Jiraiya ! The spy was writing those marvelous little books, full of... interesting situations. And right there, in front of him, an amazing scene was happening ! It was gold.

He quickly memorized the positions, the actions, the looks – everything _important_. Oh, yes, he could see it now. It would be perfect in Icha Icha – though he would have to make sure Kakashi never learned about it. Finally done, he posed his pipe.

Time for some _answers_.

He coughed politely but pointedly, and finally obtained their attention.

"If you would explain... ?"

Immediately, Kakashi jumped on his – _her_? – feet, pointing an indignant finger towards a slowly standing up, still grinning Hime.

"Hokage-sama ! It's _her_! Look at what she did !"

Raising an interrogative eyebrow towards the green-eyed woman only made her laugh again.

"Aah ah ah – his _face_ !", she managed, wiping some tears with one hand.

Sarutobi felt his lips twitch without his accord, but managed to subside his smile. It was the first time he heard the woman laugh, freely and truly. He had heard her laugh bitterly, sadly, disdainfully even – but it was the first time she laughed with joy, and it was strangely contagious.

She had a beautiful laugh. It illuminated her eyes, and brightened her face. She was breathtaking, in a lively way. She made him think of young Naruto, when he laughed – a true laugh, not a fake one.

"Can you tell me what happened ?", he tried again.

"She – we – we were training – _fighting_ – then I asked what Magic could do – then she did _this_ !", half screamed Kakashi, hands hovering over his – damn, was it really _her_ , now ? – own body, without daring to actually _touch_ it.

"Ah ah ahh – ", helpfully added Hari.

"Stop this ! Stop whatever you've done !", urged Kakashi, turning back toward the woman.

"But you're so _cute_ like that !", protested Hari, lips stretched in a bright smile.

"I'm not – !", Kakashi looked deeply offended. "I'm not _cute_! I'm a male, I'm _handsome_ !", he insisted loudly.

"Whatever you say", grinned the Hime.

"Hokage-sama !", complained Kakashi, looking at him with an hopeful, pleading eye.

And damn, but that was much more effective when he – she was a woman. Where had the somber, grim, somewhat suicidal Kakashi gone ? Not that he was complaining, mind. In fact, it was excellent news. Even if it did make his Elite Jonin revert to a slight child-like behavior.

"Could you ?", he asked Hari, nodding towards the Jonin.

"Must I ?", she pouted, still smiling a bit.

He only sent her a pointed look, and she let out a put-upon sigh and snapped her fingers quietly with mock-sadness.

"Oh, well", she shrugged uncaringly _._ "I prefer watching him as a male anyway. Pretty good eye-candy".

Completely ignoring Kakashi's suddenly startled look – and was that the hint of a blush he could see creeping over the top of the mask, wondered the Hokage, squinting at his Jonin – the Hime vaguely waved her hand in the silver-haired man – woman – direction.

Without so much as a poof of smoke, Kakashi was back into his own, very male body. And his uniform was back too, with was a good thing, because the Hokage didn't particularly want to see his best ninja in a pretty, feminine kimono.

(But he wasn't against seeing him as a woman. You know, if it were to happen again...).

Kakashi _beamed_ , and that was the first time Hiruzen saw him beam honestly. He often did it to infuriate or annoy others, or to deflect questions ; and that was the first time he did it with actual joy. He hadn't had much to enjoy, ever since his father's suicide... maybe since a bit before that. Sarutobi was quite satisfied to see him less tense than usual.

Kakashi was patting himself, reassured to feel everything was back to normal, and – a hand in-between his legs quickly confirmed that _everything_ was back. Relief washed over him.

It was over.

It wouldn't happen, ever again.

"Magic really can do everything", said Sarutobi, in a slightly awed tone.

It hadn't been a genjutsu – he had checked several times. But he was becoming used to the fact that impossible things happening were _real_ , and not mere illusions.

Kakashi only half-heartedly glared at his tone (being somewhat close to the Hokage didn't change the fact that Sarutobi was his _Kage_ , and one simply do not glare at one's Kage), but Hari laughed delightfully.

"I know !".

"How did she surprise you ?", he asked out of curiosity. Kakashi wasn't one to be caught unaware.

It was curious, in fact, that he had even been caught.

Kakashi went to open his mouth, and protest furiously about the surprise in his Hokage's voice – _he_ didn't have to live with the Hime, he knew nothing about what magic could do, especially in pranks ! You can't avoid something that can't be heard, felt nor seen ! – but closed it quickly.

In front of his very eye, his Hokage had suddenly become an old woman – though the very air around... _her_ , still belied the false impression of frailness and weakness.

"Just like she surprised _you_ , Hokage-sama", deadpanned Kakashi, though there was a underlying hint of smugness in his voice.

The Hokage's eyes widened in shock, looking down at himself and realizing that _yes_ , he was – he _had_ a _woman's body_.

Suddenly, Kakashi was able to see the harmless fun in this prank. You know, now that he wasn't subjected to it anymore.

Hence, he snorted, quickly morphing his expression into a neutral one. Hey, it was his _Hokage_ , not some other Jonin or whatever !

They all clearly heard the strangled cry coming out of the old woman's mouth, and Kakashi could honestly say it was his first time seeing the Sandaime that shocked. The old _man_ was usually always unfazed.

Clearly his poker face failed him right now.

(Not that Kakashi had anything to say about _that_ , he inwardly admitted, considering _his_ poker face had been crushed into pieces mere moments ago. But he won't speak about it if you won't, and he will kill whoever talks about it. Just saying).

"Can you – _Turn me back_ ", ordered the Hokage, a deeply disturbed look on his – _her_ face.

Hari only grinned, and snapped her fingers once more, instead of waving her hand. Kakashi noted that in a corner of his mind – it certainly confirmed his theory that the _witch_ didn't need to do any special gesture in order to do magic. It would mean that she did so by habit, or to make them more comfortable around her, knowing they could at least _see_ her doing magic... Or for some other reason. He wasn't sure yet.

The Hokage experienced then the same relief Kakashi had, patting himself to be sure he was back to normal.

"Thank you", he muttered, glaring slightly at the unrepentantly grinning woman. "Was it a... _permanent_ change ?"

"What do you mean ?", questioned Hari.

It obviously wasn't permanent : they were back to normal now, weren't they ?

"I mean, how long would it have lasted, if you hadn't reversed whatever it was you used on us ?", clarified Sarutobi patiently.

"Oh", realized Hari, before her smile widened a bit. "Forever".

Well, until her death actually, but that was so far away, it could be considered as 'forever' for her victims. The Hokage himself was old enough, he would never see _her_ die ; and Kakashi, though only one little year older than her, was much more liable to die before her, since he could actually die of mortal wounds.

"And it was a _complete_ transformation ?", demanded the Hokage, interested despite himself.

"Yeah", she confirmed. "Entirely women, you both were. You could have had children, if you had tried something like that".

The disturbed looks on their faces made it clear they _wouldn't_ have tried that, but Hari skillfully ignored it all.

"So, I'm on time for my meeting", she chirped. "Kakashi insisted to accompany me".

Said Jonin shot her a dark glare, but said nothing. There was nothing to say.

"Ah, yes", sighed Sarutobi, shuffling some papers. "It was supposed to be about how you felt in Konoha, and if you had settled well, as I do every time ; but I can see the answers to my questions already. Something in particular to tell me ?"

Hari thought about it a second, and was about to decline, before remembering something.

"Actually, yes. You wouldn't happen to have a parcel of land to sell ?"

"We have several, but you can see that with Konoha's estate agency ?", answered the Hokage, with a curious voice.

"Yes, but this particular parcel of land would then _disappear_ from everyone's memory, and would not be visible anymore. So I would prefer something discreet, not in the center of the Village. It's a bit obvious if I keep disappearing out of thin air".

"Wait", frowned Hiruzen, already feeling another headache coming. He always had one, when talking to the strange woman that was the Hime. "What ? It will disappear ?"

"Yes", she said, as if it was obvious. "I will render it unplottable. No one will be able to see it, whether they happen to walk right next to it, or fly over it. Additionally, every person that knew it was there will forget it ever existed or at the very least will not be able to remember _where_ it is located. There will be a part of land, almost in another plane. No one will be able to enter it, either, without my Keeeper's written permission", she explained.

As much as she personally disliked the Fidelius, she knew it was the best and easiest solution to protect something – as long as that something wasn't a house. It's not easy to live somewhere, when people can't see your house, and can't visit you without having to read the address on a piece of paper.

And she would have to choose a Secret Keeper. The caster of the Fidelius charm couldn't be the Secret Keeper, sadly. Well, Kakashi would do, she supposed. She had known him for only a little more less than a month, but she could already say that she... didn't dislike him.

(It was more than she could say about every other person she had met in her past world. And in this one, she knew so very few people that she didn't have a lot of choice... but she felt better with Kakashi than with the Hokage. Huh. Strange).

"It is very handy", complimented the Hokage, visibly interested in the possibilities offered by said charm. "Is there any drawback ?"

"As a matter of fact, yes", she shrugged. They probably wouldn't understand them, though. "The land will disappear from everyone's mind, except the caster's, and the Secret Keeper's minds. The Secret Keeper's will be the only one able to reveal the emplacement to someone else. He would have to willingly write the address on a piece of paper, and then let someone read it. Only after reading it, said person will be able to see and enter the land. He or she won't be able to reveal its emplacement to anyone else, however. Only the Keeper can do so".

"And what _are_ the drawbacks ?", asked Kakashi, after having assimilated what they had been told.

"You have to be really sure about your Secret Keeper, and then keep him under watch", she smiled sadly. "My parents were under the Fidelius – the charm's name – before they died. They trusted their Keeper, he was one of their best friend. They didn't keep watch on him".

And considering _this_ , it was obvious as to why she considered this as a drawback.

"And if the Keeper die, no one will be able to introduce new persons to the land. We would have to cancel the Fidelius, then recast it. It can be quite taxing", she added in an afterthought.

"I see. Still, I think the benefits outweigh the inconvenient, if we are cautious", decided the Hokage.

Of _course_ you had to chose the Keeper, or whatever his name was, carefully. It was obvious, and no ninja would ever chose someone they weren't entirely sure they could trust with their life. But he didn't tell this out loud.

Because Hari's parents hadn't been ninjas, and they hadn't been cautious enough ; and Sarutobi knew what it was to be betrayed. Orochimaru's betrayal was still very fresh for him, even if it had been a few years already ; and even though it had been discovered that he was, in fact, probably still alive... the Sandaime was practical enough to know that _his_ student had died, and wouldn't ever come back.

It was simply tact. Kakashi seemed to have understood this too, for he only sent a quick glance toward him, but kept his mouth shut.

The Hokage decided he would ask about the charm in details at a later date, and went to his other, obvious question.

"And what do you need this... unplottable land for ?", he inquired, carefully enunciating the word 'unplottable'.

It was a new one, and a mouthful. Still, probably better than 'land perfectly hidden that no one can find'.

"Oh, well, I need a garden", explained Hari simply – as if _that_ was an explanation.

"A garden ?", interrupted blankly Kakashi. "You already have one. A big one".

And it was true that the house she had bought beneficed of a particularly large garden – almost large enough to be a training ground. She had bought this house for this reason only, even if it helped that the house itself was nice.

And what would she need a garden for, anyway ?

Surely the one she had was more than enough for whatever it was she planned to do with one ?

It couldn't be that she wanted to do some illegal stuff, because she had said herself that she would need a Keeper, meaning someone other than her. Someone who would know what was happening inside the charm, and who would be able to report it to Sarutobi (for the Hokage had no doubts as to who would be chosen for this task. Kakashi and Hari were already remarkably well living together, even if it had only been roughly a month. _And_ they were still flirting strangely with each other, without even knowing it).

(Needless to say, the Hokage expected some development. Soon).

(He was delighted !).

"Ah, but this one is for training. Where would you go instead ?", she asked rhetorically, continuing without waiting for an answer. "Besides, I need a place apart from everything else, and protected. I plan to grow my very own magical garden. Magical plants need special accommodations, and some of them can be very dangerous, in addition of being fragile. I can't let them grow just outside the house – it's not safe, not for them, and not for us".

"How can plants be dangerous ?", asked a puzzled Kakashi. "If you think I will stick everything in my mouth, you've got it all wrong".

He couldn't help but feel a little annoyed with her apparent lack of trust in him. He was an experienced ninja – he knew not to eat something he didn't know, and he was smart enough not to touch something potentially dangerous, now that he knew it would be.

Hari shot him an unimpressed look in answer.

"Mandrake's scream can kill an adult. Devil's Snare will try to strangle you, and it's strong enough to succeed if you're not careful. Carnivorous plant will, of course, try to devour you. Some plants will launch poison at you, other will sneak around trying to contaminate you – the Shape-shifting rose, for example, gained its name for its habit to stick its spores on unsuspecting passerby. The spores will enter the body, contaminate it, and slowly kill their host. Then the plant will simply grow out of the dead body, feeding of it, and thus gaining the form of whatever it had killed. Be it an animal or an human", she listed quickly, noting their gobsmacked expressions.

Though it was harder to tell with Kakashi, since he was wearing a _mask_.

"You... What ?", stammered Kakashi, eye wide with shock. "Is that true ?"

"Why would I lie ?", she questioned back.

"Your plants are that dangerous ?", asked a shocked Hokage.

"Oh, yes, and I only spoke of a few of them", she confirmed, smirking at their expressions. "That's why I can't let them grow in my _garden_ , no wizard worth his wand would do that. The land will become a greenhouse, obviously. It is needed, since Devil Snare, for example, can only grow in the dark. It will die, if exposed to light".

There was a stretch of silence, broken by the Jonin.

"And why do you need such dangerous plants ?", he asked, still perturbed by the idea of a world where the very plants were out for your life.

 _Actively_ out for your life.

 _Sentient_ enough to plan against you.

(And what was a world where you had to protect yourself from some plant's _scream_ anyway ?!).

(Suddenly, the fact that wizards were insane made more sense. Their very _world_ was insane ! They had to cope with it, and as they said : if you can't fight them, join them. Obviously, they had chosen the sensible option, and joined whatever _them_ was).

"Very well" finally accepted the Hokage. "I will search for several grounds that have what you are looking for, and send you the results. You will choose the one you like best. Who will be your secret keeper ?"

Hari shot a quick look at the silver-haired Jonin next to her. The man caught it, of course. Hari-Hime may be exceptionally discreet for a civilian, but she had never been trained to be sneaky enough to fool ninjas.

She didn't know how to hide her expressions either – though sometimes her face closed, only showing an utterly neutral expression. Even her _eyes_ became glassy, their door closed by... _something_.

As if she suddenly closed a book. It was strange – and vaguely disturbing – but it didn't close her body language, and she had obviously never learned to do so.

"Well, I was thinking of you, actually", she announced in falsely detached manner, looking nonchalantly at Kakashi, but none of the ninjas in the room made the error to believe she truly didn't care about his answer.

It was a show of trust, however small it may look like. If he rejected her offer, he would reject her trust. She may not even be aware of this herself, but this was a test.

Fortunately, there was only one option Kakashi ever envisaged.

"Maa, I'm touched you thought of me", he drawled, smirk audible in his voice. "It would be my pleasure to protect your darkest secrets".

The tension disappeared from Hari's petite form, and she smirked back.

"Oh, trust me, you have _no idea_ of what my darkest secrets are...", she purred slowly.

Kakashi's smirk widened, and his body leaned towards Hari without realizing it himself.

"Do tell...", he purred himself.

Sarutobi decided it was quite enough.

Those two fools weren't even aware they were sweet on each other ! He didn't intend to take action, but if they waited for too long, then he would.

For now though, it had been a trying morning. Though he was thankful for the break from his paperwork, he had seen his best Jonin changed into a woman, had himself been changed into a woman, had learned things that would made him weary of plants from now on, and just learned that Kakashi could _purr_ , and that it was effective.

At least, if the faint red on the Hime's cheeks was any indication, it was.

But he _really_ didn't need to see more than that, especially not if today was the day they finally decided to... try to learn each other a bit more. His paperwork couldn't wait !

Plus, Rabbit was probably dying of worry out there.

"Right", he forcibly interrupted the duo. "If you will excuse me, some of us have work to do".

He ignored Boar's snort, just as he had ignored his choked out laugh when he had been changed into a... a woman (Kami), and he would have a _conversation_ with his bodyguard on this point later – and continued.

"You may take the _door_ ".

"Of course, Hokage-dono. See you around", cheekily waved the green-eyed wonder, before jumping out of the room.

Straight through the window.

"Ja ne !", waved Kakashi, following his... whatever she was to him now, using the same way.

Sarutobi sighed tiredly. Why did his ninjas always insist on using the windows ?! There were perfectly good doors _everywhere_ !

He sat back in his seat, finally allowing a small smile to play on his lips.

It was good to see the woman laugh freely. She had never showed any truly positive emotion since her arrival, what seemed an small eternity ago. Sure, it was understandable. She had been betrayed too many times, had suffered through too many things, to be open and bright.

She needed time to heal, something she had never had in her old world. Time to be herself, and to do whatever she wanted – within the rules. Time to make true friends, time to center herself.

Everything she had been denied in her past world.

That's also part of why he had chosen Kakashi as her bodyguard. He knew the Jonin would never push to know about her, to discover her past. He knew about painful events, and would be the last person to make the Hime close herself off... but he was skillful enough to pick some information just by living in the same house as she. And it had worked, too.

Though Hari Potta had always taken care to show that she didn't _defer_ to him – and there was a story behind that, other than her explained visceral disgust for authority, he was quite certain of that – it was now more natural. Before, it had been defiant – a sort of test, as if she was daring him to take offense.

Or maybe, as if she was making quite sure he understood that she would never bow, and never call him 'sama'. Sarutobi supposed he should care, since it could be interpreted as insubordination or insult ; but she wasn't doing that maliciously, or because she was a spoiled brat.

No, as said before, there was a story behind that – one he _would_ know one day. But for now, she was more natural when doing it. She wasn't consciously doing it anymore, it came naturally, as if he was a dear, old friend. He wasn't complaining – it was strangely refreshing. It in fact almost always made him smile. As long as she didn't fall outright into insubordination, he could deal with it. Only Naruto had the same ease when talking to him – though in his case, it was simply because he didn't know any better. Still, he quite liked the boy, and was pleased to be talked to so easily sometimes.

Anyway, the prank he had just witnessed on his Jonin (and on himself, but that is a forgotten part of his life, so really, it doesn't count), and the laugh that had illuminated her features, were the proof that she was opening herself to others, slowly but surely. She was mending, all the more quickly that she _wanted_ to heal. Kakashi helped, too.

And she helped Kakashi – it was the first time he had seen the Jonin and ANBU that relaxed since... since Minato's death. Since before that, even. He had even laughed freely, too. Well, he had been laughing about Sarutobi's little misadventure (that never happened, by the way) but it still counted.

Kakashi and Hari were good for one another. Now, he only had to make them realize that.

As long as he wasn't changed into a _woman_ ever again, he would even accept to be pranked, if that was what was needed.

But if only they would take _the bloody door_ !

(In another part of Konoha, Hari privately thought that if the Hokage wanted ninjas to use the doors, then he wouldn't let the windows open. Or, he would at the very least trap them. Since he did neither of those things, it was safe to assume he didn't really care about everyone's attitude of favoring windows over doors).

(Using only windows was one of the quirks she had learned from Kakashi. The man always used the windows if he could, often going out of his way to do so. Since it was a cool and fun habit, she didn't care to have picked it up. It made things easier).

(And really, the Hokage was practically asking for it !).

* * *

Five days after the meeting with the Hokage – and the man had been very interested with Kakashi's report, though he had thought it wise to seclude a meeting with the Hime so that she could answer questions about her abilities in a more formal way, instead of it being reports – they had been notified that the Hokage had found several fields that could satisfy the woman's exigencies.

After examining the choices, the Hari Potta had chosen one and then proceeded to drag a curious Kakashi right to the field the very next day. Then she had done her magic – he never really knew what she did whenever she used her special energy, so he couldn't say more than that – and then she had pointed at him and he had felt a wave of _something_ wash over him. That had given him the shivers, even if it wasn't malicious or threatening.

Now, Kakashi looked lazily around him, but the sharp spark in his eye belied his apparent nonchalance. Though, one would need to be near him, if they wanted to be able to see it. As it was, Hari was near him, but she was looking forward so she missed it. Still, she herself didn't look alarmed by anything, and all in all looked perfectly relaxed.

It probably meant that there was no danger around, what with her strange capacity to always know when someone was close and where they were, even if they were completely hidden from every sense ; but Kakashi was a ninja – better yet, he was an ANBU, so he was on guard even when there was no apparent need to be.

It's by lowering one's guard that one become complacent.

There were currently standing a few hundred meters away from Konoha's gates, but it wasn't the main ones. No, it was a smaller gate on the side, well protected and giving way onto fields. Konoha had, after all, some fields in order to have its own crops, though it mainly depended on trade with other villages, as any Ninja Village was prone to do.

The majority of the fields had crops in them, usually, but considering that there were in early December, roughly a little more than month after Hari's appearance, they were currently empty. Probably to let the earth breathe or something like that – Kakashi was no farmer, thank you very much.

Kakashi was no stranger with plants, even if he was no specialist – you would have to ask a Yamanaka, for that. He knew poisonous ones, medical ones, and life-saving ones, when you're lost or trapped in a place, and have no provisions left. Still, the space required was quite vast, and she had declined the Hokage's offer of asking for some Yamanakas to help her.

The Jonin wasn't sure why she thought she would be able to manage on her own such a large crop, except that maybe magical plants didn't need any care. Maybe they somehow managed on their own. Well, he would see, of course. In any event, it was way larger than any Yamanaka's greenhouse.

In a way, he could see why the Hime had chosen this field for her peculiar cultures (well, he wasn't sure how different the plants would be – he was expecting anything strange, and dangerous, from what she had told them, but more than that he didn't know, since she had found it very amusing to keep it a secret – but apparently she needed a lot of space, so there must be quite a number of them). It was relatively away from Konoha, but still close enough it was easily accessible – though she could just Apparate if she ever wished too (even though he personally would prefer to walk rather than go through that again).

There was also the fact that, though not the largest by far, this field was definitely the most remote from everything. Nicely encased in-between the forest, it was almost lost – hence the reason it had been in sale at all. The price had been surprisingly low, but the earth there must be constantly monopolized by the trees, meaning that the necessary elements needed by other plants had to be lacking.

Not a good thing for a field, he guessed. Especially considering that Konoha didn't particularly like cutting the forest surrounding it.

When asked, Hari had just shrugged and said that she had her own soil, and that she wasn't intending to sow the plants in the earth directly anyway. What she meant by that, he wasn't sure – probably, she intended to have some greenhouses rather than directly use the field. She most certainly needed the space more than the soil.

Well, all that was good and well, Kakashi thought, eye wildly searching around him. But it would be even better, if the field he was thinking about, was actually _there_. Right now ?

Right now he was standing at the edge of the forest, where he _knew_ the field was... but he was only looking at the other side. Directly. With nothing in-between.

The field was notably _missing_.

Like, _how_ ?!

Now, Kakashi was willing to admit that magic was amazing. Self-washing dishes, self-repairing training ground (or, to be more precise, garden – but whatever), changing one's hair color, changing one's sex and appearance, cutting whole trees into little shards or exploding the ground... Okay, it could do some incredible things.

But that was on an entirely new scale ! The field had been right in front of him moments before, and now, try as he might, he couldn't see it anymore

Making some part of the world _disappear_ , literally – that was... !

That was way more serious than any prank the Hime had used magic to do. Magic wasn't only amazing, it was _dangerous_.

He knew that, logically, what with the war she had been talking about and all, as well as from when they had mock-fought that one time. But that, right now, really drove the point home.

Because how hard would it be to fight against an enemy whose base was entirely inaccessible ? Whose base didn't _exist_?

Insanely hard, that's how. Their base would be so secure, they would be able to relax, avoid spies and assassins and attacks, and would be well-rested for actual fights. That was an ace – more than an ace, that was literally an assured win, if played correctly.

And that would be really frightening.

Kakashi was suddenly very, very glad Hari had chosen Konoha among all the Villages – even if she had done so on a external reason. He got the distinct feeling of having avoided a kunai, despite knowing that she would have refused to use her magic in order to allow whichever Village she would be in to win a war. She was okay with fighting, and doing missions as long as she didn't have to kill innocents – she would have never accepted to take part in an attack on the others Villages just because hers would be assured to win thanks to her, and they wanted to take advantage of that fact.

She didn't care for such petty affairs.

Not for the first time, Kakashi felt glad and proud to be a shinobi of Konoha. Because it was thanks to his Village's values than she had chosen Konoha, among all the Ninja Villages.

"So where's the field ?", he asked mildly, eye still searching sharply the surroundings.

So he had been warned of the... _Fidelius_ effects. It was still relatively disturbing to witness it. Still, he was supposed to be the Secret Keeper (apparently, there were capital letters – it was that important). And the Secret Keeper was the one to know where the field was – the only one who could give the location to others.

He was proud to have been chosen – it spoke of a confidence he didn't know the Hime had in him. And he knew it wasn't just because he was her official bodyguard, and just the easiest choice : she could have chosen the Hokage, and he would have accepted immediately. And gladly, at that.

He had clearly felt what he guessed was magic wash over him, so he guessed the Ritual had worked. Still, apparently the part where he knew where the hidden place was... that part was clearly missing.

"You know where it is", she only smiled, eyes shining as if laughing at him.

Well, he supposed that he did know, what with him technically knowing that he was just in front of it... He just couldn't see it. That was the problem.

"I think I know", he admitted. "But I can't _see_ it, and clearly that's a problem".

His tone may be a bit dry, but come on ! She was laughing at him while he was witnessing an impossible thing !

"Yes, you can", she smiled. "You're just not looking".

"I'm looking all right", he mockingly chirped, comically widening his eye for emphasis.

He hadn't even bothered to use his Sharingan – by then he knew that whatever Magic was and did, he couldn't see it anyway.

"Think about the location".

Yeah, thank for the advice.

It wasn't even that difficult. _Hari-Hime's magical garden is in the clearing at the edge of the forest, at the east of Konoha_. A bit long to say, but -

Wait.

 _What the fucking fu –_!

The trees were _moving !_ Like, there were sliding away, making place – _moving !_

And, wow.

He didn't think he could ever become used to that. The clearing had suddenly appeared, just like that. The trees had made place. That was – there was no words.

"Isn't it a bit obvious, the moving trees and all ?" he managed to ask – and maybe his voice was a bit faint, so what ?

He would like to see you try.

"You're the only one to see it", she explained. "I would ask you for the address, but I was the one to cast the spell, so I don't need it. But you will have to write it for Hokage-san if he wants it – just make sure to burn the paper afterward, and to let no one else read it".

She was serious, so he nodded. Not a promise, but he couldn't do more than that. If his Hokage asked – demanded – to keep the paper... Well, he would try to explain, but at the end of the day, his orders prevailed on everything else.

"Come on in", pressed the Hime, herself entering the field. "I will put some more wards around here, so don't talk to me for a bit. It won't be very exciting, I'm afraid".

He hummed, standing not quite awkwardly at the edge of the field, and watched her wave her hand this way and that. There was no beam of light this time (and he had gathered that she had made them appear on purpose that first time : showing him she was doing something. He had been quite skeptical, back then – _clearly_ that was a long time ago), but her expression was concentrated, and he knew better than to disturb her.

He looked around idly, not quite sure of what to do. Yet he remarked that forest animals were back around the field, obviously not seeing them. It also meant that they hadn't felt or seen the trees move around, else they would have been much more cautious about being in the open. They would have run away, and hidden for quite some time.

So. That really was interes -

Hey.

The clearing was clearly growing in space, right now. It had already been large, but it kept enlarging – he wasn't crazy, was he ?

Well, he was a bit, but not to the point of seeing things where there wasn't any (though that had just taken a whole new dimension, considering that he was now seeing things others couldn't see at all).

No, no, he was a good judge of distances (duh, _ninja_ ), and the clearing was clearly enlarged.

"What... ?"

Hari stayed concentrated for a few more minutes, before relaxing and opening her eyes. She looked around, satisfied, and nodded to herself.

"What happened ?", he asked again, now that he had her attention.

She looked up, apparently surprised to see him here – she had evidently forgotten about him, and what that said about her habit of doing important things alone, Kakashi wasn't sure – before smiling widely.

"I needed more space", she shrugged. "I took the clearing for the privacy, not the size. I could have chosen the smallest of them if it was well located for my need. Magic can help enlarge places – you've seen it with my trunks", she reminded him with a smirk.

And okay, they may have been a bit stunned at her trunk (full of gold !), but she could stop being so smug about it, seriously. He shot her an unimpressed look (completely false, he was very much impressed), and her smile subdued.

"I can have all the place I need with magic. I could enlarge it to the size of a country if I so desired – though it would be incredibly taxing and exhausting", she shrugged again. "I have no need for so much space, but I needed more than what I had before. Plus, now the whole place's saturated in magic, and that will do good for the plants".

"Okay", he simply said – because, what could he say, uh ?

Her smile returned, and she looked quite content. Whatever she wanted, he supposed fondly. He did like seeing her smile.

"So, when are we sowing the plants ? And where ?", he asked, looking around curiously.

The clearing's size had almost tripled, and now he was really surprised she hadn't wanted any help to manage such a large place. But she knew what she was doing. He hoped.

"Right now, of course. Why would you wait ?"

And she honestly looked surprised. Well.

"You have everything you need on you ?", he asked, because he _was_ surprised as well, since she had no bags at all – and _of course_. Magic.

"Yes", she nodded, taking a miniaturized trunk out of her pocket. "Of course".

 _Of course_.

He sighed tiredly.

"Let's do it, then".

She nodded, and opened her trunk. She then proceeded to take a lot of other miniaturized trunks out – and when he said a lot, he meant _a tone_. And there was clearly magic at play (how could it not ?), because the trunks opened alone, and began emptying their contents.

Said contents were perfectly satisfied with having to place themselves on the ground, and soon enough (way sooner than should be possible), rows upon rows of neatly arranged greenhouses were standing proudly in the clearing. The majority was in glass, shining brightly under the sun's rays, but some were in black – black glass, probably blocking the sun's rays, and how that could be good for plants, he didn't know. She _had_ spoken about a plant – Devil something – that hated the light...

But well. Plants _needed_ light, didn't they ?

"Good", she said satisfied, looking around and all in all looking pleased by the results.

Kakashi was still trying to wake up, move, say something, not faint, take his jaw off the ground – the usual. He most certainly did _not_ whimper a bit. _No._ He could certainly deal with that.

"I will plant the majority of the species now. Follow me, but do be prudent", she warned, looking at him straight in the eye in order to convey her seriousness.

"Prudent ?"

Oh, look at that. He could still speak. Trust him, it hadn't been a given.

"Yes", she began walking towards the first greenhouse – quite conveniently bearing the number '1' on its doors. "Some of them I will sow, but some I will simply transfer from pots to pots, because I need some matured ones, and I have them anyway".

"Why prudent ?", he reiterated, because she hadn't answered his question at all. Why would it change anything, that the plants were fully grown up or not ?

She looked surprised, again – and really, that was _his_ right, not hers ! – before understanding dawned on her face, along with realization and glee.

 _Glee_.

Coming from the woman who loved pranks and had turned _him_ into a woman, he wasn't feeling safe _at all_.

"What is it ?", he asked sternly, eyeing him warily.

Her smirk only widened.

"Oh, you will see".

And with that, she disappeared inside the first greenhouse, laughing lightly with anticipation. He was _not_ reassured.

Nevertheless, he wasn't one to flee (he totally was, when he couldn't win a fight, but this was different) ; so he took a deep breath, and followed her with determination.

What could possibly happens ? He was an Elite Jonin. They were just plants, seriously !

* * *

They were _monsters !_

 _Monsters !_

 _What – How – Why – When –_!

That was _insane !_

Those weren't plants, no, they weren't ! There were aliens disguised under the deceptively innocent appearance of plants !

They were bloodthirsty not-so-little things !

That's what Kakashi was thinking, escaping yet another of the plant's attempt at catching him. His eyes were flickering wildly around him, Sharingan long since revealed in a bid to save his very _life_ , searching for another attack – they were relentless.

The tentacle retreated – and he _knew_ it was looking sad ! _Sad ! –_ just as another one went from behind him. And there was a few tears in his uniform, and this Devil's Snare (and what a _deeply appropriate name_!) wouldn't leave him well enough alone, and Hari was busy laughing her pretty little ass at him, and he couldn't even fight back because she didn't want him to damage her plants ! And he wanted to be out of there, right now !

Especially considering that it was dark and that that made him all the more paranoid. Hard to protect himself when he only saw the outright _attacks_ at the last moment !

Between the plants whose screams ( _screams !_ They looked like deformed _babies_ ! They had a _mouth_! They were quite clearly _alive !_ Come on, how was that even possible !) were deadly – literally deadly, because that would be no fun otherwise ; the plants that liked to spit poisonous saliva onto unsuspecting persons, with the admitted intention of afterwards eating them ; the plants that tried to _jump_ on him in order to depose their eggs (Eggs ! Come on, _eggs_ ! Do someone see the _problem_?!) into his body ; and the one that was currently trying to strangle him, he was done.

He wasn't even talking about all the others – some were safe enough, he supposed : they respected the way plants should be, and they looked like plants, and behaved like plants, and Kakashi liked them a lot. But the others...

Oh, yes, he understood perfectly now why she had refused the Hokage's offer. She didn't want to be accused of the poor Yamanakas' upcoming demise ! And – Ah ! A sneaky attack !

The tentacle had been hidden under some earth, on the ground, waiting for its moment. Well, too bad, Kakashi was better than it, take that you organic green rope ! And yes, he was talking to a plant.

Right now, he wouldn't even be surprised if one of them _answered him_. He was that gone.

And of course, it would be so much easier if he could _see_ ! But no, apparently Devil's Snare could only grow in the dark, hence the need of the black greenhouses. Some plants simply couldn't support daylight – and Kakashi was having wild ideas of breaking the roof and letting the sun burn them all, mad little fuckers.

Serve them right, it would.

"Stop playing", mock-chided Hari (and just she wait, he would have her back for that). "I'm done here, should we head back home ?"

And yes, salvation.

"YES !", he screamed, twisting in mid-air to avoid yet another tentacle.

He shunshined right next to her, and she was easy to find because her eyes, like cat's , reflected what few (very few) light there was here. They shone in the dark, and the green of her pupils glowed softly as well. It would have been creepy, of course, but Kakashi was much more worried and disturbed by the _sentient, murdering_ plants.

You know. A man gotta have his priorities, like surviving the day. And Hari was a safeguard – for some reason, plants never attacked her. He guessed it was a magical thing. He quickly took her arm, and shunshined again out of Hell – of the Greenhouse, he meant.

Greenhouse. Hell. One and the same, really.

He immediately shut the door, using maybe a bit too much strength doing it, but the door was closed and that was enough. No complaints, thank you very much.

He had enough.

Between all of those different plants – and he was still persuaded that some of them were _animals_ disguised into plants, okay ? – and Hari's utter nonchalance about this madness, he was done for the day. He would report to the Hokage, explain exactly _why_ it wasn't a good idea to require the Yamanakas' help, and try to avoid those... places, as much as he could for the rest of his life.

There.

Now he was standing in front of the last greenhouse they had visited – and there was still a lot more to go, but it was late already, and surely they could go home now, couldn't they ? – right in the middle of the clearing.

Surrounded by trees and grass and bushes.

There was a soft wind that ruffled the vegetal, and wildlife's sounds were clearly audible for him. Of course, since they were still inside the Fidelius, the animals couldn't hear nor see them, hence the reason why there was wildlife at all.

The sun was hanging low in the sky, barely visible above the trees. The sky itself was a warm orange, and pink ; and all in all the night was soon to come. It was very peaceful, and Kakashi knew he ought to be relaxed now that he was out of there, but...

But the plants were moving – it was the wind, he knew it was, but wasn't this one bush moving a bit too much ? And wow, look at that, a root right next to his foot ! Recent reflexes kicking in, he jumped the hell away from the innocent ( _seemingly_ innocent !) root, startling Hari.

"What are you doing ?", and she had the gall to sound bewildered !

"Nothing", he cleared his throat, trying to calm himself, but his eyes were darting around sharply, seeing shadows where there was none.

Well, try having to survive murderous plants, and to escape improbable, sneaky attacks for a whole _day_ – and not even being able to _fight back_ , Kami ! – and he would allow you to voice your opinions.

As it is, shut up.

Plants were terrifying.

(He suddenly felt a bit, tiny bit scared of the Yamanakas. Oh, he knew that _their_ plants were inoffensive, as long as no one ingested them, but still. Damn. Plants were scary).

"Should we go home, now ?" He had wanted to sound annoyed, but it had come out as annoyingly whiny.

A few more minutes in there, and he would be begging to go back home, pride be damned.

"Yes", and she was smirking and laughing inwardly, he knew she was, the damn woman ! "I planted all the species I could today. I will have to come back at specific times for the rest".

"What do you mean ?", he pressed, very much not wanting to be forced to come back at all.

"Well, some species can only be sowed at specific times, specific days or night. Nightshade, for example – and I am here speaking of the magical one, not the mundane one – can only be sowed on a moonless night, either in December or in November. Never another night. And the plant doesn't live more than a year, whether it is still in earth or cut – after the year is gone, it will burn. Not sure why, I'm not a botanist, but it happens and though the ashes are used as well, I may find myself in need of some fresh ones", she babbled, already leading Kakashi out of there.

As soon as they were out of the wards, Kakashi turned back, only to see the other edge of the forest, with nothing in-between. Nothing _visible_. Yet as soon as he thought about the emplacement, it appeared. A bit breathless, he pondered on how useful that would be for Konoha, if disconcerting.

He twitched as an innocent leaf fell from the trees around them – but the last time one did this, it immediately tried to wrap around his arm, and Hari had to burn it away, chiding him about avoiding man-eating plants, so, well. He wasn't taking any risk.

Keeping a healthy distance between the leaf and himself (and hysterically thinking about the sheer number of _leaves_ in the Village Hidden in the _Leaves_ ), he concentrated on what Hari was saying, still dutifully eyeing their surroundings. There may have been a bit of paranoia there too, but hey. He had reasons.

"And that is only one of the numerous plants that need specific periods of sowing. I will have to read some more books on Botanic, still. I have read some already, to be prepared for today, but I still have a lot I don't know about plants I really need ; so I will be fairly busy in the upcoming days", she sighed, honestly looking put-upon. "Damn. I have some boring reading to look forwards – but I can't wait to plant the Whomping Willow".

And – nope. He was ignoring that.

With his luck, it was a literal name. Because _of course._

"Boring ?", he asked, fastening his pace in order to escape the forest as soon as possible. "You're always reading, I thought you liked it".

"You were wrong", she huffed, nevertheless hastening her own pace without protest, if with a little smirk. "I read because not only they're interesting – it's on wards and runes, for the moment, and I love those – but also because I will need their knowledge as soon as I'm a ninja. I have a year to prepare for it, and I do not want to waste it".

She began to run a bit next to him, because his legs were way longer than hers, still not complaining. He wished he could simply shunshin them back into Konoha, but it was impossible to shunshin through the walls, even when you were a Konoha nin. Protection, and all that.

"But I am not as interested in Botanic as I am in Runes, wards, offensive or defensive magics, or even healing magic. I don't even like Botanic, but I need it for Potions, and I sort of like potions, even without taking into account how useful it is. I will definitely need potions, so I better be prepared, even if I have a lot of provisions on potions ingredients – enough to last a few years, but still. I'm more of a doer than a brainer anyway, I prefer to do things rather than to learn about them, though I'm much more interested by books nowadays than I was before, so it's not so much of a chore anymore, not at all. I guess it's for the better – and would you stop running already ?!"

She wasn't panting, not quite, but her cheeks were definitely a bit flushed. And maybe he shouldn't have begun to run, yes, but it was a windy night, and his nerves were raw from hours in the vegetal Hell. Give him a break.

And now he was seeing Konoha, and his walls – protective walls which would stop nightmarish plants – and he wanted to be on _the other side_ already. But at least now they were in the open, and he would be able to see if some _thing_ attacked him, so he calmed a bit.

That was the first time he somewhat regretted being a Konoha nin. What with the living-inside-the-forest and all. Damn it all.

He had a sudden need to be in Wind Country – lots of sand, not a plant in mind – but squashed it down. He could do it. He was stronger than plants.

"Really", he said blankly. He had to believe he was. "Why didn't you just, uh… miniaturize the greenhouses with the plants already in it ?"

Because really, it was a damn good question. That would have avoided Kakashi a whole world of trouble. He didn't want to fight for his life against plants – hell, he didn't even want to have to _run_ after a runaway plant ever again, that damn Walking plant (and what kind of name was that, huh ? Original much ?) – and he didn't want to become afraid of thrice-damned fucking _plants_ , damn it, and keeping the plants inside the greenhouses would have saved him from _suffering_ through several hours of torture.

There.

"No can do", she shrugged, still jogging slightly next to him to keep up. "Magical plants require a specific spell to be shrunken, else the magic in the spell messes with the magic in the plant. The results can be… ugly".

He sighed. Obviously. It couldn't be easy, could it ? Damn plants.

They weren't going fast enough. The sun was falling in the sky, and shadows were growing – and _plants_ could hide in them, plotting and waiting for the right moment to attack – and he wanted to be inside the house already, where no plants lived.

He put an arm around her shoulder, quickly bent down to put his other one behind her knees, and smoothly straightened, carrying her. She gave a startled little squeak – he would tease her for that later – and rushed to the gates.

He nodded at the guards, sending a small wave of chakra to let them know it was him, using the correct code. They let them pass without interruption, and as soon as they were inside the walls, Kakashi shunshined repeatedly until he was in front of their own gates. Now he was a bit winded (keep in mind that he had spent the day doing everything he could to avoid attempts on his life) and he slowly put the Hime down.

"Next time, give a warning, will you ?", she snapped mock-haughtily, opening the gates. "Plus, you've lost my ANBUs", she added thoughtfully, looking around curiously.

"Maa, they will find us soon", he appeased calmly, already sending a wave of chakra to let them know where they were – after all, despite having been warned that Kakashi was going to use a technique to disappear with the Hime for a test given by the Hokage (total bullshit, but better than saying the truth), the ANBU team must still be going crazy at having seen them disappear and reappear out of nowhere. No need to add unecessary stress on them by making them launch themselves into a seeking frenzy inside Konoha to find them. He wasn't that cruel.

He then followed her inside, closing the doors behind him. He sighed, relaxing finally – no trees, no deceitful plants, and warm, protective walls around him. He had never thought he would one day feel protected when inside walls – not enough escapes, too small, too boxed, not secure enough – but here he was.

"Still, there was no need to hurry so much", she grumbled, going to the kitchen and washing her hands.

"I just wanted to be home", he smiled innocently, not willing to admit his sudden bout of paranoia. It would pass.

It was just his first experience with dangerous plants, at least of that kind. He would honestly like to see you try. You don't get to judge him, no sir.

(He can kill you seven ways with just his little finger. Just so you know).

"Yeah, I got it, you don't like the plants", she rolled her eyes, already searching the cupboards for some snacks.

It was not late enough to eat already, but they had been in the greenhouses all day, and they didn't eat. They weren't especially hungry back then, but know they were. Well, a bit. And Hari always had those little cakes and cookies she made during the weekend, and they were to _die for_ , really. Who was he to say no ?, he mused, accepting the one she was giving him.

Cookie with dark chocolate chips. Mmmh...

"It's not that I don't like them", he still protested, because damn it all, it had nothing to do with his dislike of it, and everything to do with their malicious lethality. "It's that they obviously were famished, and I looked particularly appetizing to them".

"You're over-dramatic", she huffed, wandering to the living room, and picking a left-open book on the table, sitting in her sofa and making herself comfortable.

He followed, sitting as well in front of her, on his own sofa. He put his feet on the coffee table, because he could and she never said anything about that, and relaxed back, arms displayed on the sofa's back. The cookie's taste is still strong on his tongue, and he thought about going to the kitchen to take another one ; but he was comfortable there and didn't want to move, so he regretfully discarded the idea.

"Botanic book ?", he changed the subject, knowing he wouldn't win this debate. He didn't often win against Hari.

"Yes", she answered, looking up – and he couldn't help but smirk inwardly at the bored look in her eyes. Served her right. "On Mandrakes. I know they need some replanting every few months, but I forgot when precisely".

"Have fun", he chirped brightly, because he will take his revenge where he can, and her glare was worth everything he suffered his day. Almost. "Wake me up when it's time to eat, will you ?".

He didn't wait for her answer, because he knew she would, even if she only huffed again.

He closed his eye, and stayed still for a few minutes, wondering about how much his life had changed, in the past two months. Here he was, lazing on a sofa, and waiting for his friend to cook for him. He was willingly relaxing and dozing in another's presence, because he was trusting her. He was waiting for her to wake him for dinner – he relied on her.

Before, he would have been training, probably. Or on a mission, he was often on those. Or at the hospital, since he had had the habit of courting death, and though he was apparently too skilled to die, he wasn't skilled enough to avoid injuries. Or laying on his cold bed, not even under the sheets, eye wide open in the dark, unseeing, reviving his worst memories and failures, and regrets.

Well, he didn't regret being here right now. He was so much better now, and he knew he wasn't becoming soft, because he still kicked asses when he could go to friendly spars with ANBUs and the like. He was even more efficient than before, now that he was well-rested, ate properly, and had a lot of time to train in private. His mindset was different, too, peaceful and relaxed – it allowed a better concentration and a clearer judgment.

Yes, Hari was the best thing that had happened to him in years.

Still, it was a startling realization. Not an unwelcome one, but shocking nonetheless.

He let his mind wander away, feeling a not-quite-sleep settle over him. His breath deepened, though he was still distantly aware of what happened around him – Hime was moving in the kitchen, and from the smell, she was doing that pizza-thing that was delicious and not at all healthy food – and he let go.

He would take care to not lower his guard too much, but he wasn't going to waste the chance he had to make peace with his past. He knew he needed it. His Hokage had been right, he had needed a break from the ANBU.

He fell asleep, to dangerous plants and green-eyed faeries.

* * *

And Done !

(1) : I directly picked the passage from HP's book - Harry's first experience apparating with Dumbledore.

Hope you liked it, people, I'm going to sleep. Don't hesitate to tell me if I've made any mistake or if something doesn't add up. Just, please, don't insult my fic in the process ? Thank you !

Have a nice day/night/week :)


	5. Wood Release & First Snow

Hey everyone !

I'm ever so sorry for the time it took to write & post this – but you know, exams and then we had to move in to a new city and the moving in was a mess, and there was summer job too, and I had little to no time to write. God I'm so tired. So, yeah.

Plus, while I have a plan that I follow, the whole half of this chapter I added on demand, because it wasn't supposed to exist at first. But I felt inspired, so DoctorKnight, that's for you :) I hope you won't be too disappointed.

Everyone else, thank you so much for your reviews and encouragements ! They truly keep me going.

This chapter is a bit shorter than usual, I think, because it wasn't planned at first – the next one will be longer ;)

I hope this was worth the wait ^_^

* * *

Dark clouds covered the moon, plunging the Village into true darkness. Not a single light came from the sky, only the warm, yellow glow of the lampposts lightening the streets allowed people to see.

Except if you were a ninja, that is, for they had for the most of them been trained to see in the dark.

Kakashi was crouched on the roof of the Hime's house, lone eye peering up at the sky. Such heavy clouds could only mean rain, but since they were December the 6th, there was a decent chance it would be snow instead. Fire Country wasn't known for its heavy snow falls, but from time to time they did get a decent amount of pure, white snow.

Considering that it was particularly cold that year, they had all the chances.

Deciding that whether it be rain or snow, it didn't matter, for it wouldn't fall anytime soon and thus didn't concern him, he let his eye fall to the trees around the house, and let it travel to those that filled the Village. The wind was biting tonight, sharp and cold, strong enough to ruffle leaves, gentle enough not to howl.

His eye narrowed in suspicion, looking at the moving plants, one hand absent-mindedly fingering the handle of one kunai, safely tucked into the pouch secured at his left thigh.

He was admittedly nervous. Too many possible threats – he usually wouldn't have been so paranoid, but after the day he had just spent into the Hime's so-called garden... he saw potential danger everywhere there was plants. Considering where he lived...

That wasn't good for his mental health, he decided. Too much stress. Still, he had to go now, for he had a meeting with the Hokage in but a minute, and it wouldn't do to be late. It had been secured yesterday – he was to explain what the Hime's garden was and consisted of, since they knew nothing about _Magical_ plants, and they didn't like not knowing things – and he had to go there.

Clenching his teeth, he jumped with a burst of chakra-enhanced speed, rushing over the rooftops towards the Hokage Tower. He reasoned that if he was fast enough, no absurdly vicious plants would be able to touch him.

He was awaited, but he still flared his chakra in the adequate code for the watching ANBUs. No need to alarm them. He took a second to be jealous of them being so blissfully unaware of the potential danger of plants, but shook himself quickly. Best not to add stress to already emotionally stunted Ninjas. It wouldn't end well for anyone – best he be the only one traumatized here, at least for now : the Hokage and Bear would lose their own sweet ignorance soon enough.

Slowing once he was inside – though he still steered clear from the potted plants, and who had the brilliant idea to put living plants inside a building, huh ? – he walked leisurely to the Hokage's Office. He nodded at the ANBUs guarding the door, since the secretary had long since gone home, and knocked on the door. He entered upon receiving the order, and stood tall in front of his Hokage.

He shot a suspicious look at the potted plant in the corner of the office – one that was checked every freaking day now – wondering when he would cease feeling twitchy around plants. He reported his attention on his Hokage, subtly turning his body towards the plant – just in case.

You never know.

He had trusted plants, before. He wouldn't do this again – those Mandrakes had been nasty, one had even tried to _bite him_. Thank Kami they were small – not only weren't they big enough for their bites to really hurt (and thank Kami, again, that they did not have _actual teeth_ ), but their screams were apparently lethal only when they were fully matured.

As it was, they gave him quite the headache, earlier. Ugly little things. At least he didn't faint, as people had been known to do, Hari had told him.

"Hokage-sama, before doing my report, I would like to officially ask for Tenzo's presence at this meeting, as well as the next times I'll go back to the Hime's garden", he said, then, seeing his Hokage's puzzled look, he added "Please".

And that wasn't begging, it wasn't – he told you it wasn't, alright ?

"And why is that ?", wondered Sarutobi, looking tired already.

"Because, and I mean no disrespect, but there is no way in Hell I'm going back here without an emotional and actual support. Tanzo is good with plants, with any luck they will be annoyed and target _him_ ", he flatly explained.

And okay, it wasn't kind of him. What the Hell, he was an ANBU, he wasn't supposed to be _kind_. Plus, it would help Tanzo – that was his official reason. The unofficial one was that he wanted the plants to have another target.

"Who will become annoyed ?", asked the Hokage, wondering if maybe the Hime had somehow forgotten to say that she would put guards in her Garden – not that he thought that likely, she had been remarkably up-front about anything up until there.

Potta-san had told them that Magical plants could be, and were, dangerous – but surely it couldn't be that bad, could it ?

"The plants", answered the Jonin, as if it was very obvious and Sarutobi was being daft.

"The plants will become annoyed ?", repeated Hiruzen, raising a skeptical eyebrow at his Jonin, all the while wondering why he kept shooting distrusting look at the plant in the corner of his office.

The damn plant was checked every day, there was no way another spy had come in without him knowing. But maybe Kakashi knew something more about that ? He himself shot a suspicious look at the innocent-looking plant. He quickly checked for chakra, but as far as he could tell – and come on, his skills hadn't deteriorated so much ! – it was just a plant.

"Yes, Hokage-sama", nodded the silver-haired man. "I respectfully request Tanzo's presence before explaining more".

The old man thought about it for a moment, before nodding.

"Very well. Bear", he ordered, and didn't need to say more than that.

While usually the Hokage's special bodyguard never left his side, the only persons in the office right now were the Hokage, Bear, Kakashi, and the ANBU commander. It had been decided that the Jonin Commander, Shikaku Nara, wasn't needed.

So really, none of these men would ever betray their Hokage, and nothing would hurt the Hokage while they were present. Thus Bear left his post as quickly as he could – knowing his Hokage was safe didn't mean he was happy being away from his post, even on orders. He intended to be as quick as possible, and thought that it was lucky Cat was actually present in Konoha, being just back from a month-long mission away from the Village. He didn't think Kakashi would have talked before Cat's return.

Then men in the office patiently waited for Bear to return with Tanzo, the Hokage deciding to do a bit more paperwork while he was at it. Soon enough, Bear had taken his position back behind his Hokage, and an ANBU with a Cat mask was waiting in front of Sarutobi, waiting for his orders.

"At ease", ordered the old man. "Your presence had been requested by Kakashi, as Tanzo".

Cat relaxed, as much as an ANBU in front of their Hokage ever did, and took off his mask, turning towards his sempai. The four men were waiting for him to speak.

"Can you put the security seal, Hokage-sama ?", asked Kakashi.

The Hokage did so, inwardly wondering what kind of plants the Hime could possibly have to necessitate such precautions.

"Report", he finally ordered, and this time Kakashi complied.

"Well, it began when we entered the Fidelius, which worked as you can tell by the fact that you have probably forgotten where the Garden is placed. Potta-san took several greenhouses out of a bag..."

"Which is why I request Tanzo's presence the next times I will have to go back there. With his affinity with plants, it is my hope that they will feel a bit less homicidal towards us", he finished his report, standing tall but never turning his back towards the potted plant, even if it meant not facing his Hokage directly.

There was respect, and there was stupidity.

The present men blinked. Tanzo especially, who had just received a crash-course on the Hime's life and on Magic, and was now faced with the perspective of sentient plants. More sentient than the basic carnivorous plant, in any case. To think that just this morning he had been relatively happy to still be alive after yet another S-rank mission…

It meant one more man in the secret, which was quickly stopping being a secret and more of a highly classified information, but Sarutobi trusted Kakashi's judgment. And indeed, if what he had said about _plants_ was correct – and why wouldn't it be ? Kakashi wasn't known for his jokes – then it would be interesting to have Tanzo interact with the plants. Safer, too.

None of the men could really imagine what Kakashi had just described, but they were definitely interested. Though plants were easily burned away by a Katon Jutsu, some sounded very interesting indeed. Ninjas weren't known to be wary of them, and the advantage of surprise meant a lot in their world.

"When will you return to the Garden ?", asked Sarutobi, leaning back in his seat.

"Tomorrow", answered Kakashi, before taking a look at the clock on the wall. "In a few hours", he corrected.

"Do you think she would oppose to our presence ?"

"No, Hokage-sama", he shook his head. "She had said herself that if you wanted to come, then you should just do that – as long as I don't give the Secret to anyone she doesn't know. I thought it was because she didn't want strangers in her Garden, but now I think it's because she doesn't want to be accused of murder".

It made a lot more sense.

"Then Tanzo and myself will accompany you when you go. Send one of the Hime's ANBUs protection to tell us when it is", he ordered, writing a few lines on a paper which he then signed before giving it to Kakashi.

It was an order for the ANBU to obey Kakashi's demand.

"Hokage-sama, if I may", interrupted the ANBU Commander, their voice absolutely non-descript, not giving any clue as to the sex of the person. "I would like to be present too".

"Is your schedule clear ?", asked the Hokage, for the ANBU Commander wasn't a person who could just take a day off like that.

"It can easily be", he nodded. "There is not a lot going on right now".

"I'll leave a Shadow Clone to keep the office. Do the same, we will at least be warned should something happen", accepted Sarutobi. "It will be four more persons to give the Secret to, Kakashi. Sure she won't mind ?"

"I'll explain Tanzo's presence, which she should easily accept – she's curious – and she won't mind you, Bear, or Dragon being there. She knows there would be more persons in the know. And you will know where the Garden is – though she knew you would have known anyway, Hokage-sama – but won't be able to tell others. And I think she has placed wards that warns her if anyone enter the Fidelius", he added thoughtfully.

"Then it is decided", nodded the old man. "We shall see each other in a few hours".

"I do have a question, Kakashi-sempai", spoke Tanzo.

"Maa, I'm not ANBU anymore", smiled Kakashi. "You don't have to call me sempai".

Tanzo looked at him blankly, and Kakashi sighed. "What is it ?"

"Why did Potta-san decide to began her garden in Fall ? Cold and snow isn't the ideal weather for sowing, is it ?", he asked, and frowned as Kakashi looked at him with a wide, wild eye.

"Oh, Tanzo. You have _no idea_ ".

* * *

OoO.

* * *

Four men were waiting at one of the smaller gates of Konoha. They were not mere civilians either – no, the four of them were very important individuals indeed. The Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, was present along with his personal ANBU guard, Boar. Dragon, the rarely seen ANBU Commander, was present as well, though one wouldn't be able to tell by looking at the group. He was well hidden. Finally, a Cat-masked ANBU was waiting as well, standing silently to the side. There was not a lot of discussion, for all four men were busy thinking about what they were soon going to see.

A Magical garden. With Magical plants. Which tried to actively kill people. Which could move, think, scream. Kill by screaming. That was a bit much to swallow, especially considering that they had never really witnessed Magic for most of them. Only the Hokage, Boar, and Kakashi had seen Magic used in front of them. The others had simply been given the information, some more recently than others, and apart from the fact that they suddenly couldn't tell where one of the fields surrounding Konoha was anymore, they had no proof of the existence of Magic.

But for all concerned, it would be the first time seeing Magic plants, thus they were all curious. And a bit wary, given what they had been told by Kakashi during his report. They knew better than to take this jokingly.

They had been waiting for less than a minute, having just received the notice from an ANBU dispatched by Kakashi to warn them that it was time. They were silently watching the road leading to the gates, having already ordered the ANBU guards to not follow them.

In fifteen seconds, the Hime would be late. Since they were all very skilled ninjas, that would make her lose some points with them. Once the countdown was over, though, they were all badly surprised by the sudden presence right behind them.

Turning sharply, weapons at the ready, they were shocked (some more than others) to find Kakashi and the Hime standing there as if all was perfectly normal.

"I really don't like that Apparition thing", groaned the silver-haired Jonin, taking a staggering step away from the Hime – just in case she decided to grip his arm and Apparate them both again.

She could at least have warned him. He thought they would be running. Or _Shunshin_ -ing. Anything but that.

"Ah", nodded the Hokage, relaxing, and smiling slightly as the Hime rolled her eyes at Kakashi. "That was the Apparition, I gather ?"

He had of course received Kakashi's report concerning their little, short spar some days ago, but that was the first time he was seeing the real thing. It certainly seemed helpful.

"Indeed it was", nodded Hari, looking at all four men in front of her, one after the other. From his hiding spot, Dragon twitched. "Shall we go ? I have a lot to do, and not a lot of time".

Idly raising his eyes to watch the sun's position in the sky as they began to walk following the Hime, Hiruzen gathered that it was around 8 a.m. Not early by any mean for a ninja, but still early enough that the day was just beginning.

"Not a lot of time ?", he mused out loud.

"Well, I have tons of plants to pot, you see", she explained easily. What could be seen as priceless secrets and information were just common facts for her, which explained why she didn't try to keep silent and never refused to explain. "What I planted yesterday was but a small part, and I have a lot more to plant still. Literally a whole other world's worth of plants".

"Interesting", hummed the Sandaime. "How long do you think it will take you ?"

"Oh, I'm not sure", she shrugged, leading them away from the traced path and towards the forest. "Some plants can be planted only at specific times. I don't know how much will change, considering that some can only be planted during highly magic-charged days for example, and there's no magic in this world, but I'd rather not take any risk. I'll just use a lot of magic in the place beforehand, or something like that".

She stopped at the edge, and they looked around, knowing that the field _ought_ to be somewhere close, but unable to see it.

"So it depends. Up to a year, since some can only be planted during Samhain, and it's months away".

"Samhain ?", asked the Hokage, taking his pipe out and preparing himself to light it.

"Don't smoke, it could offend the plants", she frowned at him. "Samhain is Halloween".

He blinked at her, but wisely tucked his pipe back in his pocket. "I see. Wouldn't want them to be angry at me".

What a weird situation, he thought. Bad enough that he had to be diplomatic with Daimyos and the like, now he had to be diplomatic with plants too ?

"Kakashi, if you would ?", she turned her green eyes towards him.

"Right", he nodded, taking a little strip of paper out of his pocket. Armed with a pen, he carefully scribbled ' _Hari-Hime's magical garden is in the clearing at the edge of the forest, at the edge of Konoha_ ', before wordlessly turning the paper towards the Hokage, inclined so that only he would be able to read it.

He then turned it for Cat to read, then Bear, and Dragon came out of hiding just to read it as well. He didn't look happy about it, but considering what was inside the Fidelius, Kakashi wasn't about to take any risk.

With a small Katon jutsu, he burned the paper, taking a large amount of satisfaction in the others' dumbfounded expressions. You couldn't really tell with the ANBUs, but their shock was such that their body language, for once, showed it.

"Impressive", breathed Sarutobi, eyes wide open, looking at the impressively high greenhouses having suddenly appeared in neat rows in front of them.

"It seems a whole lot bigger than I thought", noted Dragon, quickly crossing towards the greenhouses – he didn't understand what was going on, not really, but he knew that others couldn't see what was inside that Fidelius-thing, and the greenhouses most definitely were inside it.

If he couldn't hide, he at least wanted to be sure no one but those five could see him.

"She enlarged the clearing», simply explained the Sandaime, as if that very same information hadn't shocked him dearly the day before.

They were now all inside the Fidelius.

"Isn't the fact that it's winter a problem ?", asked Cat, while they were all following her towards one of the greenhouses – number W-01. He had waited the whole night to ask this very question, unable to sleep, especially since Kakashi's answer had been far from satisfying.

"Nah, nothing like that", she shook her head, opening the door with a small pulse of Magic that none of them felt.

She wasn't stupid enough to use only the Fidelius. They may think that it was a good enough protection, but she knew it wasn't infallible. She trusted Kakashi, she did, but he reported to the Hokage, and would give the Secret away if ordered. No one would use her plants for their own purpose.

They were once again shocked into silence. In front of them was a perfectly still wall of clear water.

"... What ?", blankly said Kakashi. "None of the others were like that".

He had seen greenhouses in which the sun shone brightly and hotly, others where it was raining like it was in Rain Country, others where the night was perpetual – and that last one had made it a pain to avoid sneaky attacks. But that was the first time he saw one filled with water.

How would they even plant the seeds ? They would float away, surely ?

"I thought I would do some aquatic plants this morning", she smiled at him – and he knew that was a mocking smirk, he _knew_ it, okay ? She took pleasure in shocking him repeatedly, she did. Rude.

"Can Wizards breathe underwater ?", asked Dragon.

"No", she said, before stopping thoughtfully. "Yes. It depends. Not normally, no, but there are ways".

"Such as ?", pushed the Hokage, watching as she deftly stepped out of her kimono, clad in a one piece black swimsuit. It hugged her body, which was most definitely firm and curvy.

Kakashi looked remarkably rigid. He didn't seem to be able to look away, idly noticed the Hokage, smirking inwardly. He quickly checked to see if his Jonin was still breathing, just in case.

"Such as eating gillyweed, for one", explained the Hime. "You should take your clothes off if you don't want them to slow you down in there".

The Hokage took his mantle and hat off, staying in his ninja gear, while the others stayed as they were.

Hari didn't seem to mind. "Or, and that's what we're going to use, by casting the Bubblehead charm".

With that, and apparently not deigning to explain what _gillyweed_ was, she gently pushed a stoic Kakashi towards the entry, until he was on the other side, underwater. She put her hand in front of his face – and she had to push herself a bit on her toes, making the others smirk a bit – before a bubble of air surrounded the lower part of his face.

He took a few experimental breaths, eye never leaving the Hime's, not even once, since she had began pushing him in there.

He trusted her. He hadn't resisted, not even a bit. He had stood underwater, unable to breathe until she had cast her spell, calm and trusting. His eye had never left her, following her actions, but he had let her do as she pleased. The ANBUs were not a bit shocked by that development, while the Hokage had somewhat expected it. Still, it had happened quicker than he had expected.

Good.

He wouldn't be able to put her under the CRA act, but he wouldn't say no to babies with her bloodline. If she had them with Kakashi, all the better. He was the last of the Hatake bloodline, too. The fact that both seemed quite smitten with each other was just perfect.

"Who's next ?", she asked them, and Dragon stepped up. He wasn't about to leave his Hokage go first, and he would rather Boar stayed with him as he himself tested whatever that technique was.

A few moments later, all of them were breathing underwater, following the Hime as she placed plants and seeds in the rows placed there just for that. They used chakra to stick to the ground, and had been interested to see her cast a warm, glowing blue light to her feet, allowing her to somehow reciprocate what they were doing. Surely the spell had existed long before she had even heard about their world, but it was still interesting to see how chakra and Magic were sometimes used to the exact same effect.

They were energies, after all, and no matter which world they were in, humans were humans. They thought relatively alike, at least as far as practicality was concerned. None of the ninjas here wanted to feel similar to Wizards in any other way, not from what they had heard about them – three of them directly from Hari herself, one from their Hokage, and Cat by reading between the lines.

Being underwater, and breathing as easily as if they were on land, was quite the experience. It was calm, peaceful, as if they were in another world – though, perhaps, considering that such things existed and were apparently possible, it was better not to tempt fate.

Still, it was... a bit unreal. They were in a huge ball of water, inside a greenhouse, inside a forest, breathing and planting seeds as if it all was perfectly normal. Yet as strange as it was, it was relaxing.

That is, until some plants began to take an interest in them, and they had act quickly to dodge sneaky attacks. Then, and only then, did they begin to understand Kakashi's plight.

* * *

OoO.

* * *

They were wet. They were panting. They were sweating. They were twitching. Above all, they were all giving a wide berth from the numerous beds of plants filling the current greenhouse – F-06.

There was quite a lot of distrusting looks involved, too.

"Okay", cheerfully chirped Potta-san, beaming up at them. She was back in her dry kimono, not even a wrinkle on the soft cloth. "Now let's just go to F-01 so I can plant the Whomping Willow".

Cat honest-to-god whimpered. Chakra didn't have influence on Magic, and each and every one of the plants here seemed to take offence of the fact that he was using Wood Release to protect himself against their attempts on his life. Incidentally, that meant he was their favorite target. Others had noticed that, and like the bastard shinobis that they were, had left him alone to deal with it on his own.

He wasn't one for pranking, but damn if that didn't call for revenge !

So sure, his Wood Release had saved his life – from _plants_ , damn it ! – more times than he could count, but it also won him more enemies than the others.

He still wasn't sure what he thought about plants being offended by his very presence. Or about plants being offended, period. Or having plants as enemies.

In fact, right now, he found he wasn't sure of a lot of things.

It would have been a lot better if they had been able to _strike back_ against the little monsters, but they were not to harm them. A good, strong Katon jutsu had been on the tips of their tongues since the first half-hour spent inside those, even underwater, but sadly they were not to use it. Nor could they use kunais – except against that Iron Vine, which could change its consistency to iron, sharp and dangerous, and which was a bit stab-happy.

It didn't help that it apparently _loathed_ when people around it had iron on them, and was known – famous, even – from killing the poor, unsuspecting persons just for that reason. Now, all the shinobis would have liked to have been given that information _before_ entering the plant's reach, because with their weapons and hitai-ate and armors...

Yeah. That plant really, really hadn't liked them. At least they had been able to use kunais to protect themselves from its strikes, even if it did made it even more angry with them. Oh, well.

Then there was the plants that were more subtle, though no less lethal. At first, when Potta-san told them that they were to make sure none of the little balls of glass that somehow sprouted from the Smoking Tree ever touched the ground, they weren't quite sure what she meant. But as soon as they neared said tree – strangely colorful, with each ball full of a cheery-colored smoke – some of the balls began to fall.

The Hime had made them catch every one of those, rendered easier by the fact that the tree had the decency of _not moving to kill them_. They were almost ready to declare that one as their favorite Magical plant thus far – no attempt on their lives, that was a definite plus – before Hari explained that the balls were full of poisonous and hallucinogen gases that would kill any living being breathing them under a minute.

Which, well. They were surprisingly _not_ surprised, more like disillusioned, and had thus learned that some plants apparently used toxic fumes to kill their prey. And what was it, with the Magical plants, that made them all carnivorous anyway ?!

After that, they were much more concentrated about catching every falling little ball of swirling smoke.

Also irritating was the fact that the Hime was having way too much fun. None of the plants ever came after her, and she took great satisfaction and fun seeing them dodge and duck for their lives.

And now, they were going to plant a Whomping Willow. The name in itself didn't mean anything good. Hopefully it was just a metaphorical name, right ?

Yeah. Right. No chance in Hell.

With a burst of speed, they all exited the current greenhouse, relaxing and taking a breather once they were out of here. The persistent Iron Vine tried to follow, but was stopped short at the entry. Magic prevented any plant to exit if Hari didn't modify the wards for them.

Thank Kami she hadn't done that. She wasn't so cruel.

They all grinned sadistically at the upset-looking plant, which was pushing pitifully against the invisible magical ward. Serves it right. Sarutobi made an indecent gesture at it, and Kakashi took great pleasure in taking a kunai out of his pouch to sharpen it slowly and meticulously.

Both of them had always had quite the vindictive streak – but even Bear and Dragon had a vague air of smugness around them as they stared the plant down. Cat was too busy leaning against a blissfully normal tree in the clearing for emotional support.

The Iron Vine backed away, letting the Hime pass. With a pat on one of the leaves, the Hime exited too and closed the door behind them.

"She's such a dear, isn't she ?", she smiled up at them, green eyes laughing and shining with glee.

Kakashi wasn't sure, but he thought he had seen her tuck a camera away. Oh, the blackmail material she must have collected today ! He could only sob slightly in despair.

"You don't even like gardening !", he protested, with what most certainly wasn't a whine.

"I don't", she admitted easily, "though we call it Herbology. Still, I do like your faces and reactions, so it makes it all worth it".

Dragon's fingers twitched, but he stayed remarkably controlled. Boar's head was swiveling around nervously, and he was too busy hysterically controlling the surrounding bushes and trees, and turning around the Hokage jerkily, to talk.

Sarutobi was still a bit dazed.

"You are evil", spat Kakashi, following resignedly the woman as she began walking towards another row of greenhouses.

"That's _payback_ for all that training you made me do !", crowed the woman, eyes bright. "I told you I would get you back for it !"

"I never _made_ you do anything at all !", protested the Jonin, staring at the grass at his feet with suspicion. He kept as close to the Hime as he could – for some reason, if he was close enough to her, the plants did not go out of their way to attack him.

In fact, they seemed to avoid her as much as they could – they certainly never tried to attack her. He very much doubted it was because she was the one to plant them – from what she had told him, gardening was quite the dangerous job in the Wizarding World.

No _wonder_ they were all absolutely bat-shit insane ! In a world where _plants_ were crazy... well, whoever said 'if you can't fight them, join them', did have a point.

"Yes you did !", she turned to scowl at him. "You egged me on, so that I would do more than I should have ! Each of our sessions leave me sore for days !"

"Not my fault your pride refuses to let you back down", he dismissed, side-stepping a small bush. By a few meters. "I simply let you do as you like".

"You provoke me and you know it", she turned her nose up. "You shouldn't".

"I will not stop", he said, glaring a bit at her. "If you don't want to overdo it, then stop being so damn stubborn and don't give in to the baiting".

Before the woman could answer, Cat miserably interrupted them.

"What do that have to do with us ?", he shot them a pleading look, ANBU mask long gone and secured at his belt. Plants always tried to steal it. Dragon had been stubborn though, and left his firmly on his face.

Then again, his identity was a bit more secret than Tanzo's.

"What do you mean", she frowned at him curiously, stopping in front of the aforementioned F-01 greenhouse.

"I get that you and Kakashi have a thing going on", he pleaded, "and that your flirting is weird – but can't you leave us out of that ?".

The shocked looks and deadly glares he received – from both – told him it wasn't the best thing to say. He had never been good at the socializing-thing, and the ANBU Corps weren't exactly known for their lessons in that aspect.

That was such a civilian skill.

"We are _not_ flirting !", growled Kakashi.

"We have no _thing_ going on !", affirmed Hari.

"My bad", meekly corrected Cat.

They glared at him a bit longer, looked at each other with faintly pink cheeks – which he wouldn't mention, ever – and walked inside the greenhouse. Tenzo looked at his Hokage upon hearing his chuckle (why would he laugh now ?), but had no choice but to follow the couple.

The _duo_. Like, no feelings involved.

He had learned his lesson.

Time to face that Willow.

They were standing inside a large clearing, with the nearest trees being quite the distance away. In this greenhouse, it seemed that the weather was the same as it was in Konoha – sunny and cold. No impossible climates in there – which was a relief, since it had been quite the shock for them to escape the water prison of W-01 only to find themselves caught in the burning Hell that had been D-02.

The kind of plants that lived in a desert were monstrous. They would never look at a cactus the same way ever again – it had been way too skilled with its needles. None of them had been caught, not even once (they were all A- and S- ranked Shinobi, give them a bit of credit, will you ?), but it had been disturbing nonetheless.

None were in any hurry to go to Rain Country, or Wind Country, anytime soon, coincidentally.

In front of them was a huge hole in the ground, with a huge amount of freshly disturbed earth right next to it. The Hime had just finished creating the excavation, with impressive Magic. Those explosions were certainly to the level of Grade-5 explosive tags.

"That's a big hole", blankly noted Kakashi, displeased by the fact that none of the plants around them had tried to attack them even once.

As strange as it was, now that nothing tried to kill them, it only made him even more nervous. Surely that meant they were biding their time, and planning a cunning plan ?

Oh, plants planning a cunning plan. How was that his life ?

"It's a big tree", she answered smugly, not a single spot of dirt of her clothes.

Nothing had tried to attack her, after all. She had no reason to be as keyed up as they all were.

"Of course it is", he nodded faintly, stepping right behind her.

He liked her, he did (though he sometimes forgot that fact, especially the longer they were inside the greenhouses), but she was an excellent shield and he was not above using her for that, should that tree decide that it wouldn't mind attacking her, all things considered. He knew better than to think his enemies would never do something predictable.

The messy-haired woman turned around to take something inside the trunk that she had taken out of the trunk hanging around her neck (Kakashi still hadn't been able to wrap his head around the idea of a shit-tone of stuff being contained inside a single little trunk, but it would come... eventually), and they all tensed.

What would it be ? How would it react ? They had until it was planted and the stasis charm removed to study their enemy. After that, it would act.

She retrieved... a small, leafless tree, with round extremities. It didn't look like much, but they all waited in silence and with baited breaths for the Hime to place it where she wanted, and to cancel the shrinking charm.

They had been had by that once, thinking it was the plant's actual size – they wouldn't be had twice.

Once the tree had been placed at the center of the crater, Tenzo found in himself the strength to ask a question he wasn't sure he wanted the answer to.

"Why is this one apart from everything else ?"

True enough, just this morning Hari had explained that the magical plants were rarely if ever alone. For all their aggressiveness, they didn't do well when they were the only magical plants around. One could say that they were social, in a way. That's why the Hime had often planted small, relatively normal and inoffensive plants around the most dangerous ones, to keep them company.

By 'relatively normal', they meant that those plants didn't scream, didn't move, didn't attack, didn't shoot sharp, iron needles, or burning pus, or anything of the like. Wonderfully normal.

They just had strange properties – but as long as they weren't out to kill them, the Ninjas couldn't care less.

"Oh, the Whomping Willow is... peculiar", tactfully said the Hime. "It doesn't like others plants around it – its ground, its kingdom, you know ?"

"... So it's even more aggressive, isn't it ?", tiredly realized Kakashi, eyeing the boulder-like branches under a new light.

"Yes", she admitted sheepishly.

"What are its uses ?", asked Dragon with the kind of tone that suggested that it better be really useful.

"Oh, they're plenty", she smiled, deconstructing the Stasis charm – the ones placed on magical plants were different from the ones used on wizards, and rather long to cancel. "Can be used for wand making, its sap is useful in potions, its bark in woodworking – it's very resistant – and all around it's a great guarding tree".

The shrinking charm suddenly broke, and the small tree grew, and grew, and grew. The ninja's heads raised up, and up, and up, until they were feeling very small in front of the enormous tree. The boulders looked much more imposing now.

The tree shivered, almost groaning, and stretched, of all things. It seemed to turn on itself, as one would do to pop their spine, and stretched its branches. It was remarkably flexible, for such a massive tree, they noted distantly.

Then it seemed to realize they were here, and immediately its branches began to repeatedly pound the ground where they had been standing. It had a remarkable sense of coordination, smaller and shorter branches pounding where they were standing when they had jumped on it, while the longer and heavier ones attacked them once they were on the ground.

They decided not to risk it, and jumped far away, enough to be out of its reach. During that – though it hadn't taken more than a minute – the Hime had put the earth back around it, poured water, closed her trunk, shrunken it again, put it back in the final trunk, shrunken that one, put it back on her necklace which she put back around her neck, and began walking towards the exit.

She took one or two photos. Not much, but considering that it was magical photos, and that as such it wasn't a image that she had captured, but a whole moment of softly panicking ninja jumping around madly, she thought it was enough.

Plus, she had quite number of photos from previous events. She smiled evilly at the thought.

She looked at them as they were looking back at the irate Willow, out of range. She raised a sharp brow.

"Maybe you should step back again", she warned them, just before the whole tree plied at its base, groaning, and crushed on the ground where they had been.

"It _shouldn't_ be able to do that !", protested an indignant Kakashi. "Hang on, where's Cat ?"

The Willow straightened back up, revealing a dense shield of wood encasing who they guessed was Tenzo. He had probably wanted to test his Wood Release against the Willow's attack. It had held quite well, even if it was a bit dented here and there.

The tree looked curious, extending a branch to poke at the structure. It was more of a punch, really, but comparatively to what it could do, it was mild. Tenzo stopped his technique, looking impassively at the Willow...

Which put one of its branches down, clearly intending for Cat to stand on it. Tenzo warily complied, and the tree brought him back up, high in the air, until he was as high as the tree itself. Then it calmed, though it seemed to poke at Tenzo with its smallest branches, waiting for him to use wood again.

Tenzo did, and him and the tree had a bonding session, while the others on the ground tried to understand what they were seeing. There was an undignified amount of open jaws and dumbfounded expressions. Hari, eyes wide and mouth open in shock, still remembered to snap another picture.

When one is introduced to the Wizarding world without having been raised in it, one develops a small resistance to repeated shocks. Enough to keep functioning if needed.

"That", she said, "is the first time I've ever seen a Whomping Willow liking someone".

It seemed that even after more than a hundred years, she could still be surprised by the magical world.

* * *

OoO.

* * *

They were standing outside the Fidelius, facing the innocent-looking greenhouses, though they were the only ones to see them. Their clothes were askew, a bit ripped, a bit dirtied, and they themselves were panting a bit – all except the Hime, that is.

Sarutobi took his pipe out of his pocket with vindictive pleasure, lightening it with a stronger-than-strictly-necessary Katon jutsu, took a long drag, and slowly let the thick smoke out in the greenhouses' direction. He viciously hoped one of those damn plants would smell the smoke. He had no intention of ever returning inside anyway.

Cat was finally able to put his ANBU mask firmly back in place, and all in all the shinobi finally relaxed. All the while keeping a suspicious eye on the plants surrounding them.

"I understand now why you were so twitchy yesterday", mumbled Sarutobi to Kakashi, referring to his strange behavior in his office, concerning the interior plant.

"Just wait until you realize how much we're surrounded by plants, Hokage-sama", the Jonin muttered back.

"Ah, speaking of", suddenly perked up Hari, turning to face the Hokage. "I would be interested in acquiring cattle – or even mouse, really, as long as there's a lot of them – when should I come to your office to talk about that correctly ?"

"Why would you be interested in that ?", the Hokage raised a questioning eyebrow, puffing contently – though a bit stiffly – on his pipe.

"Well, I don't know if you've noticed", she said drily, sarcasm coating her voice, "but Wizarding plants tend to be on the carnivorous side. I don't particularly want to hunt every day to feed all of them, nor do I want to have my own farm just for this one purpose. Uselessly complicated. There's not enough hours in a day for that".

The ninja ignored her sarcasm masterfully, and considered that. Sure, most of them would do well with mouse, but others clearly needed more than that – bigger than that. That would mean augment their meat consummation, which would be okay since she would be paying quite handsomely – she would doubtlessly insist to do so, and they weren't noble enough to protest, they were ninjas after all – but it also meant spy and such would wonder what that supplementary meat was for.

They would begin nosing more carefully and intelligently than they were now – now that they thought that nothing about the Hime was interesting or important, bar her money – and Sarutobi wasn't sure they could afford that. He planned on having the woman spend a year as a civilian in Konoha without making waves, so that he could plan her integration in his soldiers' ranks smoothly once the time had come.

If it was revealed that she was, in fact, much more powerful than anyone else on this world – and on other worlds too, now that he thought about it – that she was, in fact, the second SS-rank ninja to have ever existed (and that she was no ninja yet didn't matter), it would make such a political shit-storm that he had a headache just thinking about it.

Better have contingency plans ready for when that time would come – and he would do his best to delay the inevitable for as long as possible. He was about to answer the Hime, when she spoke again.

"Or, you know, I can also make do with some bodies that need to disappear", she said thoughtfully. "I'm not picky".

That won her weird looks.

"Bodies ?", Kakashi grimaced at her. "You would feed them human bodies ?"

Really, he didn't think indulging their cravings for human flesh was a good idea – especially if he would have to hang around in the foreseeable future.

"Why not ?", she countered. "No waste. If you need for some bodies to disappear, well, now that's a good option. I guarantee no one will find their bones".

"This is weird, even for you", decided the silver-haired man, shaking his head at her.

She shrugged. "Says the man with gravity-defying hair".

"Hey, now", he protested, glaring at her. "Your hair's not much better, always messy. You think you can hide it by twisting it into a bun, but you're not fooling me !'

She glared right back. "Do not speak of what you don't understand ! My hair is perfect as it is – and I will have you know it's hereditary – and anyway messy hair isn't rare. Hair naturally shooting up towards the sky is !"

"Maybe for you, it is", he spared her a voluntarily condescending look. "But not for the rest of us, it isn't".

"Look, you damn –"

Whatever she was going to say would never be known, for they were interrupted by a very tired Hokage pinching his nose in frustration.

"Silence, children".

That shut them up, though that did nothing to stop their glares. Hari even shot him a strange look – as if she was wondering whether to be offended to be called a child, or to laugh. There had to be a story behind that look – but he wisely decided that he had had enough for one day… make that one week.

"We will speak about food for you plants in the upcoming week, if it's not too urgent ?"

He really didn't want to talk about the damn plants right now. He had had enough of them for the day. And probably the year, if he was honest, but facing unpleasant meetings was part of his job as a Hokage.

"Oh, uh, no, no it's okay", she shook her head slightly to remember what they had been talking about before she got… side-tracked by Kakashi. "I have enough to last a year – I just don't want to be caught unaware".

The Hokage nodded sagely. "The wisdom of those who know that to plan is to win".

Hari opened her mouth to tell him that it wasn't that as much as it was that she had received a Troll in Herbology once because she had had to take care of a plant, which included feeding it a mouse regularly, but had postponed the task of buying more mice to the last moment, because she had had better things to do. The shame of that first – and thankfully last, no matter how much Snape had tried – Troll had burned bright, as bright as the plant had when it had incinerated right in front of her horrified eyes.

The Phoenix's Death did that when it died. Sure, the ashes had been gathered and used by Mrs. Sprout, who had explained their uses in many strong healing potions (not to confound with _actual_ Phoenix's ashes, which strangely could only be used in poisons) but she had never liked failure.

She had learned her lessons. She always did, and never made the same mistake twice. At least, she tried really hard not to.

"Sure", she said instead. "Let's go with that".

A small silence fell on the group, as if they were waiting for something to happen or for someone to talk. The ninja were especially suspicious of their surroundings, ready to bolt at the slightest hint of a threat, while Hari simply waited for them to decide if they wanted to go now. She sure would go home with Kakashi, but maybe the others wanted to talk more, or maybe Kakashi himself wanted to spend a bit of time with actual ninjas – which she wasn't – and old friends – which she wasn't yet.

Realizing no one would move, she took it upon herself to break the stillness – she was becoming quite hungry.

"So, that was fun", Hari beamed up at them. "Who will come back ?"

The silence was telling.

"I understand better the wizarding world", tonelessly said Dragon. "In a world where you have to be wary of plants, you have no choice but to abandon common sense and embrace madness – and a severe lack of common sense as well".

"It's not so bad", she shrugged, stepping away from the Fidelius-hidden clearing, and towards the Village. "I have many more to plant still, and some are perfectly harmless".

"Harmless ?", sarcastically retorted Bear, studying a small tear in his clothing – he needed to up his evasion training. That damn Vine had almost gotten him. "None of them are harmless".

"Of course some are", she rolled her eyes at him. "Not all of them are dangerous, else Herbology wouldn't be a first-year course at school".

"What age are first year ?", asked Cat, who hadn't gotten that particular information.

"Eleven", answered Kakashi, remembering what the Hime had said during her explanation of her life. "So I guess the danger level is less ?"

"Indeed", she nodded approvingly. "It is even boring".

"Then why are all the plants we've seen lethally dangerous ?", he asked, narrowing his eye at her.

"Why, I especially selected the most interesting ones just for you !", she beamed at him again, a vindictive spark in her green eyes. "Wouldn't do for you to be bored".

"You did it on purpose", he realized. "You took the worst plants and shoved them into our faces instead of gradually showing them to us".

"I did", she admitted freely, a spring in her step.

"You little !", he glared at her, but made no move to actually attack her. "My baiting you into training did not warrant such a harsh vengeance !".

"Right now, I would agree with you", she admitted, before turning her head to scowl at him. "But wait two days, and I will say that it's perfectly proportional".

"What's in two days ?", meekly asked Cat, feeling like he was intruding into a couple's dispute. But they weren't an item. No.

"Physical Training Day", darkly revealed Hari, shivering dramatically. "The worst day of the week".

"It's not bad enough that it justifies traumatizing us for life", growled Kakashi.

"You can't see plants without twitching, I can't twitch without crying", she retorted hotly, turning sharply on her heels to face him. "Fair's fair".

He lowered his head, looking straight at her. "It's not fair at all".

"It _is_ ".

"It is _not_ ".

"It _is_ ".

"It _is n_ –"

"I have better things to do", grumbled the Hokage, glaring slightly at Hari – who had admitted to showing them the most dangerous plants on purpose – and marching away resolutely. "Paperwork's waiting".

Bear's eyebrows rose behind his mask – for his Hokage to willingly go back to paperwork, he must have been more affected than he thought – dutifully following behind the departing old man.

"You will accompany the Hime back _here_ should she ever ask you to", blankly ordered Dragon, and Cat's shoulders slumped but he nodded. "Good. Go back to your day, you have a week-off before going back to duty".

With these last words, Dragon disappeared in a soundless _Shunshin_.

Cat shot a last look at the still bickering duo, sighed heavily – he had _not_ expected his day to be spent like that – and left as well, head hurting from everything he had learned and seen.

Kakashi and Hari stopped bickering, took a look around them, and smirked at each other in satisfaction. The others would no doubt have wanted a debriefing, but they were in no mood to do that.

Grievances apart – and grievances there was – they knew each other well enough to be able to put these small disagreements apart when needed. Tonight was movie night – Hari-Hime had a TV the likes of which he had never seen before, and an astounding number of _movies_ – and none of them wanted to miss it.

Plus, the Hime made that thing with corn, which was called _pop-corn_ , and which was damn good. Not really good for their health, and Kakashi would never live off it, but a bit from time to time was fair game.

"That was almost too easy", commented the Hime, grinning at him.

He banished the strange feeling in his stomach automatically, used to do it by now, and shrugged. "I'm not complaining".

He quickly took her arm, and _Shunshin-_ ed them both repeatedly until they were standing in front of the gates leading to their house. Hari's house. Whatever.

"I could have Apparated us here", she frowned at him, opening the gates nonetheless.

"I know you could have", he nodded, satisfied to have avoided that fate.

"Whatever", she rolled her eyes at him, skipping towards the house happily.

He watched her go, before turning and sending the appropriate code with his chakra towards the hidden ANBUs. He received the appropriate answer, and nodded at them, stepping inside the garden and closing the gates behind him.

Then he walked inside the house, aiming for the shower to finish relaxing before collapsing in the sofa in front of the TV.

As far as he was concerned, life hadn't been as good before the Hime has arrived in his life, a bit more than two months ago. Even if he now started every time the wind ruffled grass and leaves.

* * *

OoO.

* * *

Kakashi Hatake was pondering.

He and the Hime were to do yet another visit to the recently acquired garden-under-Fidelius, as it was called by Hari-Hime – or the garden-from-Hell, as he quite accurately dubbed it, in his humble opinion – tomorrow, and he wasn't certain he was ready for it.

He had seen strange things, in his life. Twenty two years may not seem a lot, but for ninjas, it was quite exceptional ; especially considering he began at five. _And_ he lived through a war.

Well, even with everything he had seen in his life... _that garden_ was... – let's just say nothing had ever prepared him for _that._

He now had the regrettable habit of _twitching_ whenever he saw a moving plant. And considering that he lived in a Village, which itself was situated in a forest, and that the wind wasn't stopped by the trees that circled everything... Well, he twitched a lot, nowadays.

And Hari-Hime had decided to buy another parcel of land, for _animals_ this time.

And, no.

No.

He didn't want to be afraid of _animals_. He was already afraid of _plants_ because of her, and that was quite enough. Just this morning, he had been sparring with Asuma. Hari had been waiting patiently on the side of the training ground, immersed in yet another book, though she had taken time to observe their spars as well.

It was nice of her to accept to pass the day sitting on the ground (even though he suspected she had used magic to be more comfortable, he had no proof), waiting for him to be done. Asuma had been surprised – but then again, ninjas' idea of an Hime was that of a spoiled, pampered, immature girl.

Though Hari-Hime did have the 'pampered' look down – her looks were quite incredible, and she did look soft, since she never showed a lot of skin, hence hiding the scars he knew she had – she most certainly wasn't spoiled, nor immature.

(Well, if one forget the pranks... But apparently, it was a Familial Tradition. Something to do with some Marodeurz... Whatever that meant).

Anyway, the spars had been quite good – he was clearly winning, thanks to his natural skills, and the fact that he had been able to train without limits every day for two months – but after winning, Asuma had asked him why his aim was suddenly so poor.

The answer was, it wasn't.

It's just that half his shots had been directed at _suspiciously_ moving plants.

(Officially, though, it was that Kakashi was training for a new technique. Asuma didn't need to know about his recent trauma).

And Hari had laughed mercilessly when realizing that fact. He wasn't happy about this. He was a damn good shinobi – he shouldn't be reduced to that !

Anyway, he knew she would be authorized to have her infernal Zoo, as much as he feared the moment she decided to actually do it, and knew beforehand that he was in for a whole new level of emotional pain. He was already tired.

Pushing those thoughts away from the moment – they weren't helpful, and he was stressed enough already - he let the Hime walk leisurely back home, and joined the ANBU team shadowing them for the day. He knew them all – one had ever been under his commandment when he was an ANBU captain. Mere months ago.

The ANBUs had finally remarked that what they saw happening inside the Hime's house, and what was really happening, were two very different things. Needless to say, they weren't happy at having been tricked all this time.

It admittedly stung their pride, and they were annoyed at those long and utterly _useless_ hours passed watching over basically _nothing_. Kakashi only grinned when they came to him, and said that they should have realized it sooner. It was his excuse as to why he hadn't warned them, and he was sticking to it.

(It certainly wasn't because he wanted to see their astounded and horrified and frustrated faces. No).

They, finally, had also noted that the Hime always seemed to know where they were. It wasn't something obvious – distracted glance at them when they moved to a new spot, no surprise whatsoever when a ninja burst past her suddenly... It was as if – no, not _as if_ – she _knew_ where people were around her.

Even those that were ANBU level, and doing their best to stay hidden.

It wasn't even conscious – she didn't seem to realize she was doing it. Like the fact that she always moved when they did, and did her best not to have her back to them. If Kakashi called her on it (he had done it once, just to see what she would say), then she would only look at him curiously, not understanding what he was talking about, before smiling sheepishly upon realizing what she was doing.

It drove the ANBUs mad, the fact that a _civilian_ always knew where they were. They had pushed themselves everyday to try and be totally undetectable, but it never seemed to work with her. It wasn't that she saw them, it was that she felt them – how, they had no bloody idea. It was infuriating.

Kakashi himself hadn't asked how she was doing this, assuming it was another effect of her magic. She _had_ known how many ANBUs there was in the Hokage office, and where they were. She had also immediately realized the plant wasn't a plant, but an spy.

But she hadn't known that his Shadow Clone was with her in the kitchen... so he couldn't be sure. Was it because the Clone wasn't _alive_ ? He didn't know. It was all suppositions.

He, of course, planned to question her on this subject – and a lot more subjects with that – but hadn't done it yet. There was still ten months to go, he was in no hurry.

And it amused him, to see the frustrated ANBUs training madly in stealth. If nothing else, they had become even more excellent in this aspect of the ninja arts, and the Hokage was quite satisfied with them.

He was talking with the team quite peacefully, trading some information for another – he _was_ a bit out of the loop, since he had stopped doing missions out of the Village, and couldn't even walk wherever he wanted when he was in Konoha. The ANBUs were, of course, subtly searching for information on Hari-Hime, and Kakashi had quite the fun denying them.

Not that he made it obvious.

He suddenly interrupted himself in mid-sentence upon feeling rapidly approaching sources of almost entirely-concealed chakra. At least, the team of Kumo's ninjas had finally decided to act, it seemed.

They had known of their presence since the very first day – they had been looking for it. News of Hari's status had reached the other Villages since a bit more than a month already, and there was no doubt they were all furious to not have been the Hime's chosen Village ; as well as wary of what this new development meant for Konoha.

Konoha had been at its weakest, and they all had been waiting for the perfect opportunity to destroy it. But a Hime meant new money, which in turn meant better weapons, and better standing. Even more, other Lords would choose Konoha for their missions now, since the message sent by the Hime's decision was that Konoha was the best Village – the one she choose to live in, and the one she trusted to protect her.

That wouldn't sit well with the other Hidden Villages, and so assassination or kidnapping teams were expected. Kumo's was the first to act, and though they weren't sure if it was to kill or to kidnap, they were definitely targeting the Hime.

Kakashi sighed softly, lips stretching in a pleased smile.

 _Finally_ , some action !

It had been Hell to wait for them to decide to act !

Now, he only hoped the Hari wouldn't be too upset or shocked by the enemies' actions – though knowing her past as he did, he knew very well the chances that she was would be were very low. At the very least, her awful plants would have some fresh food soon.

Hari was walking slowly under the trees.

Which wasn't something rare, considering that when living in Konoha, you couldn't spend a day without walking under one – except if you decided not to leave your house, that is.

She was still amazed by the incredible size of this Country's trees. Sure, some trees back home were as big as those, but they had the advantage of growing with magic. And they were very few.

 _These_ trees were truly gigantic.

Village Hidden in the Leaves, indeed.

She was thinking about what she had managed to read in her book, earlier, during the spar. Said spar had been quite distracting – two admittedly handsome men, fighting each other under the sun, skin glistening with sweat... It was kind of hard to not look, sue her – but she _had_ managed to read a few pages anyway.

She was thoughtfully considering the best way to incorporate the _Intension Ward_ among the wards already raised around her property, when she felt a switch in the atmosphere, and refrained from smiling with satisfaction. _They_ were finally moving.

She didn't know from what Village they were, but some ninjas had taken to following her whenever she was out of her wards. She knew they were not from Konoha because each Village had its own 'scent', from lack of other words, and each ninja caught this 'scent' when growing up. It wasn't a scent someone could smell, but it was engraved on their souls – that's what she could smell.

At least, that was what her theory was, since she only knew of Konoha's scent. But she knew that everyone in Konoha had it – except for some special persons. A tiny bit of Legilimency told her that they were spies, or nukenins from another Village having joined Konoha.

Those last kind of ninja _had_ a beginning of Konoha's scent – but the ninjas that had been following her definitely didn't have it.

So they were enemies, and after her. Their goal wasn't hard to guess.

She had deliberately walked away from the center of Konoha, baiting them into a discreet place, away from the Village's life. It helped that she had already been out in the forest, to watch Kakashi and a friend of his fight. It looked all the more natural, that she had wanted to take a small stroll after spending so many day sheltered inside her house, especially considering that none were able to see through the wards and thus none knew of the truly indecent amount of physical training Kakashi forced her to do regularly.

They _had_ to take the opportunity to attack _now_ , at least that's what she had hoped they would think.

And she had been right.

Usually, when she was walking in Konoha, Kakashi was always right next to her ; it was impossible for them to try anything then. It would be utter madness to try anything in the Village itself. But she rarely went out of her wards – she had nothing to do in the Village, after all, bar shopping – so the opportunities to act were very few. Today was the first they would have, in a little less than a month of them trailing after her.

It didn't hurt that right now, Kakashi wasn't visible.

Oh, _she_ knew he was close by – she could feel his presence, with the other ANBUs, some feet away – but _they_ didn't know that. They probably thought he had gone home, after this morning's training. She had to admit that the ANBUs and Kakashi were quite adept at hiding their presence from everyone else. Not that she could say something about it, since she didn't know if they were really that good or simply good enough for ninjas – in both cases, she wouldn't know where they were if she didn't have her magic, and wasn't Mistress of Death.

Still, now the enemies were nearly on her, so she quickly and silently cast her bubble protection. She loved it – and it was ever-so helpful when she went sneaking around Kakashi, to surprise him.

He _was_ surprised, alright, but he did also have the unfortunate habit of attacking whoever surprised him. Her bubble had saved – well, not her _life_ , but had saved her from a lot of painful moments, at the very least.

She tensed, unconsciously preparing herself from the weapon's or body's impact with her bubble. She could now see the ninjas, all in black, no face visible, almost too fast for her to follow. She waited and -

\- was suddenly flying.

... _What_?

There were arms around her waist, and she was suddenly sitting in someone's lap. Looking up – _of course_ it was Kakashi.

The man took his protection mission really seriously, after all, as he did every mission, she had learned ; so it was not surprising that he had gone and taken her out of harm's way. Looking back, it was probably better that way – no one would know about her magic.

It was to be kept a secret for as long as possible. The Civilian Council would know about her Kekkai Genkai in less than a year, during the already planned meeting for her final integration as a Konoha's citizen... and the beginning of her integration period in Konoha's ninja Corps.

Then again, they wouldn't know anything specific – just that she had a particularly strong Kekkai Genkai, and that she was to be a kunoichi. No doubt the Ninja Council would know a bit more – through spying and subtle questions, of course.

But still, they would only learn very few parts of what Hari was really capable, and that wasn't for now anyway. So it was better not having showed her bubble. The only ones who knew about it were the Hokage, the four ANBUs that had been in the office during her first meeting with the man, Kakashi, the three Jonin that had been with him at the gates, and the two chuunin who were guarding said gates – as well as the Jonin and ANBU commanders.

Not a lot of persons, but already too much for ninjas, who thought that if more than three persons knew a secret, then it wasn't a secret anymore. Hari would disagree, but no one asked her what she thought about it, so she never said anything.

(Nor did she reveal that she had cast, after the meeting was done, a secrecy charm on every person involved. Now, they could still speak about whatever they thought happened when she had stopped Kakashi's attack, but only if they were alone, or among people who already knew about it. Needless to say, they wouldn't be able to give any information to any suspect person, especially considering they wouldn't be able to speak about it if someone was eavesdropping on them either).

(You gotta love magic, she thought fondly).

The man beamed down at her.

"Maa, they finally decided to come, huh ?"

Deciding that it wasn't a real question – what would she have to answer to that ? – she only rolled her eyes, and looked down at what was happening there. The ANBUs had engaged the three enemies, and since they were only two, they had to manage in three-to-two.

They weren't losing, but they weren't winning either.

She was startled by a sudden puff of smoke, and saw another Kakashi standing right next to the first. This one was also beaming at her – and he was exactly identical to the original !

She also couldn't _feel_ the double, nor sense him... Because he wasn't a 'he', but a 'it'. It wasn't alive, it was a copy – and _that's_ who had been watching her when she had been cooking in the kitchen back when she had cooked for Kakashi for the first time ! She had known that someone or something had been watching her, but had been utterly unable to discover who or what.

 _Heh, Kakashi must have known_ , she thought with a small, annoyed frown. That was totally like him not to say anything. Well, she had to admit she hadn't particularly thought about it.

The feeling of being watched by someone she couldn't sense hadn't happened again, and she had already added a new ward that notified her of everything that entered the lands around the house. It wouldn't alert her of animals (which would have been a flaw had animagus existed in this world, but they didn't, so that was good for her – especially considering that her magic registered summons as _humans_ , what with they having chakra coils and all) or inanimate objects ; but anything with an actual soul, as the Summons seemed to have, would trigger the wards.

Still, those clones appeared to be really interesting.

Now _that_ was a neat technique. She wanted to study it ! Then maybe she could adapt it to Magic, if only so she would be able to avoid spending real time suffering through some auto-proclaimed _'really wealthy and important persons''s_ well-meaning and welcoming speeches when she was buying groceries.

They never did seem to take a hint and leave her well alone. And she couldn't even be rude to them, since she had to act like a Hime until the year was gone. Maybe she would convince Kakashi to teach her.

She felt herself being shifted into the clone's open arms. Looking up at the first Kakashi curiously, she saw the anticipating expression on his face, and understood quickly.

Well, who was she to prevent him to have fun ? He seemed so giddy, she didn't have the heart to say anything.

"Stay with the clone", said Kakashi, already looking down at the fight. "He's me, same memories, same personality. I'll be back soon".

And with that, he was gone and fighting in less than a second, looking more alert than he had been in the past months – except when he was subjected to one of Hari's pranks. He looked quite alarmed and alert, during those.

The fight ended soon, and Hari had to admit that the sheer speed at which ninjas moved, was very superior to her own. Loath as she was to admit it, in purely physical terms, she would always lose – even after having trained like mad for years before crossing worlds.

Well, at least she had the consolation of being better than genins and civilians alike – and to have her magic, which basically rendered her invincible. Some would say it was cheating – but ninjas were all about cheating, so it was no problem whatsoever.

"Maa, it has been quick", drawled the clone, still carrying her princess-style. She felt she ought to be offended about that – she wasn't some weak little girl – but couldn't quite find the will to do so.

The clone jumped down, carefully avoiding holes caused by explosions, as well as the corpses scattered on the floor. There was no survivor – it appeared the defeated ninjas killed themselves, preferring that over being captured. It showed that they had known it was a suicide mission.

That was something Hari couldn't understand – suicide mission. She had never gone on one, and she knew of no person who had. It asked for a lot of courage, to go on a mission knowing that you were going to die, no matter what. During the War, every mission had been planned to ensure minimal risk for everyone ; though it had not always been successful, far from it.

Still, it was the fact that Kages seemed to issue that kind of missions often that didn't sit well with her. _She_ would never go on a suicide mission – not because she couldn't die, but because she was no tool. She valued life too much, to accept the careless use leaders had for it in this world.

Well, it existed in her old world too, of course, but here it was systematized . She knew of no Village that had _never_ used that kind of missions. However, Konoha was the one who did them the less, so it had gained points for that.

The clone put her down on her feet, before dispelling – in another puff of smoke. Chakra seemed prone to those puffs of smoke, oddly enough. She was always a bit startled when one appeared near her. It also never failed to make her think about the first time she had met one of her Snakes, a year before travelling across worlds.

"No survivor ?", she raised a curious eyebrow towards Kakashi.

Because, while she knew it had been a suicide mission, and that the enemies had planned to kill themselves as soon as it was obvious that the mission's outcome went against them ; she also knew that the ANBUs would have managed to capture at least one of them alive if they had so wished.

Maybe not all of them, but at least one, and that would have been enough.

"Maa", Kakashi waved the subject away, stretching lazily. "No need. We already knew everything they knew, and they didn't know anything important. A precaution for if they were successfully captured".

Hari remarked the curious and surprised emotions coming from the masked ANBUs around her. What, were they expecting her to cry or faint ? It wasn't her first assassination attempt – and this one had been pathetic. It wasn't even an attempt, it was just enemies tricked to attack now, hence playing her game.

She had been through incredibly complex assassination attempts before – really, a whole competition had been infiltrated so that she could be kidnapped at the end of the third part of the Tournament. Realistically, since the mole had been one of their _teachers_ , Croupton Junior could have just petrified her and delivered her at night to his Master...

But no, somehow, the whole dramatic ending had to happen, because Death Eaters were apparently Drama Queens. Really. And Voldemort had sent Basilisks, trolls, Giants, Snatchers and traitors after her. _Those_ had been some impressive attempts – maybe way too complex to easily succeed or to succeed at all... but impressive nonetheless.

There had been _thoughts_ put in them – and what was her life, when she was offended when enemies only did half-hearted attempts to kill her ?

In any case, this one was nothing interesting at all.

Apart from the truly fantastic physical feats of the ninjas, that she had for the most part missed, that had been a waste of her time.

"So I didn't have to bait them here ?", she asked the silver-haired man.

Said man sent her a discreet, curious glance, shrugging while doing so. He was becoming used to her being herself.

"Nah, no need for you to do that. We'll just wait for the others to make an error, and take care of them".

"Huh", she smiled at that. "Good to know, I guess".

Then, she completely changed the subject.

"Well, it's already one p.m. Should we head home to eat, or go to a restaurant ?"

Kakashi inwardly laughed at the stunned body language of his fellow ANBUs – though he was not ANBU anymore, you never stopped to be an ANBU. As long as he had the tattoo on his shoulder, then he was liable to be given other ANBU missions. And no one could erase the tattoo.

Of course, if said ANBUs expected Hari to be a typical Hime, then they were sadly mistaken. To see her acting so normally just after an attempt on her life apparently shook them, and Kakashi savored their shock. It wasn't everyday ANBUs were so visibly unsure of themselves, but it seemed to happen more and more now that Hari was part of his life.

Then again, it wasn't only ANBUs – it, sadly, concerned himself, as well as the Hokage. Hari seemed to have a strange effect on people around her.

And _they_ didn't even know of her past. It was obvious they didn't know how to take her. And they could ask him all they wanted, Kakashi wasn't about to give them information, hints, or advice.

It was much funnier to see them flounder around – and he admitted inwardly that living with Hari seemed to have twisted his sense of humor ; or, at least, make it appear, since he couldn't remember a time when he actively participated to throw people off.

Huh.

He _did_ feel better now, than he had when in the ANBU, now that he thought about it. Maybe putting him on her protection wasn't that bad an idea, after all. He didn't feel the impulse to look at Death in the eyes, and hope She would take him, and reunite him with every person he had lost.

He silently acknowledged his Hokage's wisdom, while answering Hari out loud.

"House. I need a bath".

Because while he didn't have a lot of blood on him, he _was_ just out of a fight, and before that a spar with Asuma. Though it hadn't been a battle to the death, Asuma was skilled enough to tire Kakashi quite a bit.

"Very well", nodded Hari, already walking away and towards her house – she didn't know where it was precisely, since she was still very much lost in Konoha without her Jonin bodyguard ; but she felt the pulse of her wards, and just followed it.

Kakashi walked right next to her, hands in his pocket and face turned towards the sun, happy about the fact that he had been able to fight today. He had missed this – the risks, the adrenaline, the fact that your life is on the balance...

Hey, every ninja was crazy. It was a requirement for the job. Or, more accurately, it came with time and experience.

Behind them, gaping ANBUs stupidly watched them disappear without moving, not sure of what had just happened. Their vision of Konoha's Hime now thoroughly broken.

The first snowflake of winter touched the ground.

* * *

So I hope you liked it ? Don't hesitate to give me ideas, honestly your reviews really help me add little details and even whole events, as you can see.

ALSO, VERY IMPORTANT : a few of you have asked when Naruto would appear, and if Hari would immediately protect him. BUT, this story is a prequel to one of my other stories - the beginning, what happened before that story (Team Seven's Strangest Day, hence the TTSD, 'cause I have great imagination for titles), because a lot of people had asked me to write one.

So obviously, I have an end game, and I can't change the past. This story will end where the other began, and so Hari and Naruto won't meet anytime soon.

But never fear, I also have a sequel planned, where they will definitely interact, and Hari will totally change what happened in Canon.

Anyway, Have a nice day/night/week everyone !


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